After two teenagers were shot outside his Long Island house on Sunday afternoon, New York congressman and Republican candidate for governor Lee Zeldin claims his family is safe.
When they were struck by gunfire from a moving car, the two guys, both 17 years old, were strolling down the street in Shirley, New York, where Zeldin lives, with another adolescent.
The individual who was with them then departed as the wounded teenagers attempted to hide in Zeldin’s yard by ducking under his porch and into the bushes.
While the congressman’s wife and teenage girls were not home at the time of the incident, Zeldin claimed that they were in the kitchen working on homework when they heard gunshots and shouting.
Zeldin stated at a press conference late on Sunday that “one of the gunshots was actually located 30 feet (9.14 meters) from where they were sitting.”
According to the police, the teenagers’ injuries are not life-threatening. Both received care at a hospital in the region. The teenagers are from the nearby towns of Mastic and Mastic Beach, according to the authorities, who withheld their names.
The Suffolk County Police Department issued a statement saying, “At this point, investigators have no cause to believe there is any connection between the incident and the residence.”
Zeldin said he was unaware of the identities of the two victims. He claimed that his 16-year-old daughters contacted 911 after locking themselves in the bathroom. The family is shaken but OK, he said. The incident happened as Zeldin and his wife were leaving a parade in the Bronx.
He claimed that on Sunday night, authorities were conducting an investigation at his house and reviewing the security footage.
According to a spokesman for the department, police were unable to provide any information regarding the shooter.
In his campaign against Democratic Gov. Kathy Hochul, Zeldin has made violent crime a key issue. Among other things, he has campaigned for the state’s bail requirements to be stricter.
Crime has practically reached our front door, just like it has for so many New Yorkers, Zeldin remarked on Sunday.
Later, he said on Twitter that one of the bullets was discovered 30 feet away from his daughters, who were sitting at the kitchen table when the shooting took place.
It’s his second near-death experience in recent months. He was attacked in July while running for office in upstate New York when a man walked up to him onstage and shoved something sharp close to his head and neck. He wasn’t hurt, and the man was taken into custody.
In a message shared on Twitter, Hochul claimed to have received a briefing on the shooting.
I’m glad to hear the Zeldin family is safe while we wait for additional information, and I appreciate how quickly law enforcement acted,” the governor stated
