A $20,000 reward was announced Monday for information that helps police solve the drive-by shooting death of an 8-year-old boy in Pomona.
Jonah Min Hwang of Pomona was inside a home in the 1100 block of West 11th Street when he was wounded by a bullet fired from the street about 6:35 p.m. Feb. 20, police said.
The youngster, whose family brought him home from a Taiwanese orphanage less than three years ago, died at a hospital.
Pomona police Lt. Eddie Hernandez told reporters the shooting occurred while the residents were hosting a dinner at which a total of four children were present. He said Jonah did not live at the home, but was visiting with his parents and brother.
Neighbors told reporters the residents are married school teachers with two children of their own.
“As a parent, as a longtime police officer in this community, this is right up there with some of the more senseless acts of violence that we see as police officers,” Hernandez said last week.
Hernandez said a gunshot had been fired at the residence in January, but no one was home at the time. It was unclear if that incident was related to the fatal shooting or if was a case of “mistaken identity,” he said.
Pomona police Sgt. Bert Sanchez previously said the family that lives there “has zero ties to gangs that we know of. From all indications, it’s a very good family.”
The reward is being offered by the Pomona Police Department and the city of Pomona for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the suspect or suspects responsible for the crime.
Anyone with information on the case was urged to call homicide detectives at (909) 620-2095, or Crime Stoppers at (800) 222-TIPS.
— City News Service