NYPD searches for suspect in Staten Island pellet gun attack on woman, baby

Police are searching for a suspect who shot a 42-year-old woman with a pellet gun as she held her 2-month-old baby on Staten Island. The incident occurred around 7 p.m. on May 2, when the suspect, riding as a passenger in a silver sedan, fired from the vehicle near Jerome Road and Benton Avenue, striking the woman in the back while the child was unharmed. Surveillance footage shows the assailant, described as a man in an orange jacket, smirking as he fired the gun. The suspect fled westbound on Evergreen Avenue, and the victim refused medical attention at the scene. Authorities have released images of the suspect and are offering a reward for information leading to his arrest, urging the public to contact Crime Stoppers with any tips. The motive for the attack remains unclear, and police have not determined whether it is being investigated as a hate crime.