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WELLSVILLE -- Village police are investigating after a 14-year-old boy was shot in the stomach on Tuesday evening in the area of the former Sterling China.
The boy's name and condition are not being released, but he was flown to a Pittsburgh area hospital following the shooting and Police Chief Eddie Wilson said police believed he was still hospitalized on Wednesday afternoon.
Wilson said police were made aware of the shooting after the boy's mother notified them about it shortly after it happened. The shooting occurred in the area of White Street near the lot, which is now vacant.
Neighbors did not call police about the single gun shot that Wilson said can clearly be heard in video surveillance they have been able to obtain from the area.
As of Wednesday afternoon, Wellsville police were reviewing all the video obtained leading up to and after the shooting. Wilson said they are piecing together what occured and talking to anyone seen coming and going from that area around the time of the shooting, between 8:30 and 9 p.m. Tuesday.
At this point, Wilson said police know that the boy was able to contact friends nearby following the shooting and they came to pick him up. The boy was found to be armed at the time. Police were able to briefly speak to the boy following the shooting, but hope to be able to do a more thorough interview with him shortly.
Only a couple blocks from the site of the shooting, Wellsville High School canceled classes for Wednesday as Superintendent Richard Bereschek said they wanted to "err on the side of caution" following the shooting. However, he said teachers were called to the school at noon on Wednesday to discuss the shooting and the plans for resuming school on Thursday, unless something else changes.
"In no way do we think there is any direct threat to anyone at the school," Bereschek said, adding the school intends to have a police presence there on Thursday.
Backpacks and book bags will be checked and students will be scanned with a wand as a precaution.
djohnson@mojonews.com