An adorable 10-year-old girl was killed outside her Florida home after being hit in the head by a stray bullet believed to have been fired in celebration of the New Year.
Yanelis Munuguia, who had just celebrated her 10th birthday on December 26, was ringing in the new year with family when she was hit in the head by the stray bullet at around 4:04 am on Wednesday.
The innocent child immediately fell to the ground outside her family’s home on the 2100 block of Northwest 27th Avenue in Allapattah, sending the family into a panic.
Her parents noticed a gunshot wound on the back of little Yanelis’ head.
Now panicking, amid a lively New Year’s Eve party outside their home. The family put the girl in a car with the intention of taking her to the hospital and called 911.
Hialeah Fire Rescue eventually intercepted the family and transported Yanelis to Jackson Ryder Trauma Center, where she was pronounced dead.
‘Shooting a gun in the air has consequences. Who paid? A little girl,” Yanelis’ relative, Carlos Gutierrez, said through tears.
‘What did the girl do? Nothing. What was her fault? But that’s the way things are.’
Yanelis Munuguia, 10, was ringing in the New Year with her family when she was struck in the head by a stray bullet around 12:04 a.m. Wednesday
The innocent child immediately fell to the ground outside her family’s home on the 2100 block of Northwest 27th Avenue in Allapattah.
Miami-Dade police believe the unknown person who fired the shot fired wildly into the air to celebrate the start of 2025.
‘Every new year we talk again and again about the fact that what goes up must also come down’ Detective Andre Martin told the story CBS News.
‘This is a prime example of the dangers of randomly firing a firearm into the air. We have a ten-year-old girl who lost her life early this year.”
The grief-stricken family is now struggling to plan a funeral for the child and struggle to explain to her 7-year-old brother that his older sister is gone.
“Every time I came over, she was always happy to see me and now I can’t bear to go into their house and not be able to see her anymore,” said Yanelis’ grandfather, Ramon Valdizon.
‘It hurts my soul. I can’t bear to go into that house and not see her again.’ he said.
The family has since had a GoFundMe page to help cover the costs of the young girl’s funeral expenses.
Her funeral is scheduled for January 11.
Yanelis Munuguia had just celebrated her 10th birthday on December 26
“Every time I came over, she was always happy to see me and now I can’t bear to go into their house and not be able to see her anymore,” said Yanelis’ grandfather, Ramon Valdizon. ‘It hurts my soul. I can’t bear to go into that house and not see her again.”
“It’s a great loss and shame that a 10-year-old girl was killed by this bullet,” a family member told CBS News.
“You can only imagine how the parents feel and the family. A moment of joy turns into tragedy.
“The public needs to be aware that you can’t do these things. I encourage people if you know something, say something.”
Miami-Dade police are offering a reward of up to $5,000 for information leading to an arrest.