A 9-year-old Camden boy has been blinded after being shot in the face by a stray bullet as he walked to his grandmother's house to feed his two parakeets.
Relatives told The Philadelphia Inquirer and The Courier-Post of Cherry Hill that Jorge Cartegena was shot around 2 p.m. Monday.
"The eye doctors have seen him. They said he will never see again," his mother, Isabel Cartagena, told the Inquirer.
Though Jorge was in critical condition Monday night, relatives told the Inquirer that the fourth grader is expected to survive.
They say he was taking a break from playing basketball to walk to his grandmother's house to feed his parakeets when he was caught in the crossfire.
Two days earlier, Jorge got a job detailing cars at an area car wash. With his first day's pay of $20 Jorge bought ice cream for himself and his sister, reports the Inquirer.
"He's the most productive worker I have ever seen for a 9-year-old," Larry Fuller, the owner of the car wash, told the Inquirer.
No arrests have been announced.
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