5-month-old baby injured in shooting

The Tampa Police Department is investigating a shooting that left an infant injured on Saturday.

Shortly after 1 PM on September 3, 2022, officers were called to a home located on the 8300 block of 17th St in Tampa in reference to a 5-month-old baby who was shot in the hip. The child was immediately transported by EMS to Tampa General Hospital. At this time, the child's injuries do not appear to be life-threatening.

Paula Marie Concepcion Santos, 25, and a 3-year-old child were in the home at the time of the incident. According to Concepcion Santos, the 3-year-old accidentally fired the gun after getting ahold of the weapon. Detectives are still working through the details to determine how the shooting occurred. Concepcion Santos was arrested and charged with child neglect with great bodily harm.

"While we're incredibly thankful this infant was not fatally injured, this should serve as a reminder to every parent or guardian to immediately go and check that their guns are properly secured," said Chief Mary O'Connor. "Children should not be able to access firearms, and moreover, guns should always be stored in a locked safe with the ammo stored separately. Don't put the life of a child at risk by being careless."

To better educate children on gun safety, Tampa PD partnered with More Health last year to produce a video on firearm safety. The video can be viewed and shared from our Tampa PD YouTube channel.