Man Charged After 11-Year-Old Boy Shot in Sydney Home

An 18-year-old man has been charged after an 11-year-old boy was shot in the face and neck in Sydney, Australia.

While the child is receiving life-saving treatment in the hospital for his gunshot wound, police arrested three men before releasing two of them pending further inquiries.

The two men who were released were taken to the Hills police station.

The third man, identified in media reports as Isaac Bechara, aged 18, was taken to the Riverstone police station and charged with concealing a serious indictable offence – a criminal charge that applies when an adult fails to report or hides information about a major crime.

He did not apply for bail and was refused bail at a hearing in Blacktown Local Court on Tuesday.

Earlier on Monday, police were called to a Norwest home in the Hills District in the state of New South Wales, at about 5pm, where they found the minor with gunshot wounds. Paramedics treated him on the spot, before rushing him to the hospital.

Five others, including four 18-year-old men and a 44-year-old woman, who were present there were unharmed. Each of them was described as a friend or family of the victim.

Premier Chris Minns on Tuesday called it an “incredibly distressing situation”, adding that "it's also a very a tragic reminder of how dangerous guns are, often the people who are the victims of guns are innocent people”.

The 11-year-old remained in the hospital in critical condition with his mother at his bedside, said superintendent Naomi Moore.

“She is as distressed as any parent would be about what she is dealing with at the moment,” the Hills District Police Area Command commander said.

“It is an absolute tragic situation. And as we've seen some tragedy across Sydney in the last couple of days, this is not far from the worst that I've seen.”

While Superintendent Moore said it was “far too early” to say what happened, initial reports indicated the shots were fired in the house. The police are also trying to locate the firearm and investigate the presence of a gun in the house, which has no firearm registered to that address.

On Monday, while she said that preliminary investigation does not link it to organised crime, a day later she said police had “engaged” with the boy’s family, in response to a question about their links to the underworld, reported Australian Broadcasting Corporation.

“Police have engaged with the occupants previously and again that's all I want to say about that at the moment," she said.

"However, a number of individuals that were inside the unit at the time are well known to NSW Police and their association with organised crime is being considered by investigators."

She said that some of the people present at the home at the time of the incident “are not cooperating with investigators”, while others who fled before the police reached the spot are being sought by the detectives.