NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) — A 13-year-old boy was killed and his sister wounded after a shooting at a Bellevue park Wednesday night.
Metro police reported a fight broke out between teenagers in the parking lot of Red Caboose Park on Colice Jeanne Road near Bellevue Middle School around 8 p.m. on Wednesday, May 29.
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Aayden Hayes, 13, was found on the pavement with multiple gunshot wounds, according to authorities. He was taken to Vanderbilt University Medical Center where he was pronounced dead. Aayden's 16-year-old sister ran to the nearby fire station where she was assessed and taken to VUMC.
Metro police spokesperson Don Aaron said witnesses provided information that led to the detention of a suspect, 15-year-old De'Anthony Osasosifo, who had walked about a half-mile up the road. He was taken into custody while walking on Highway 70.
A K-9 officer with Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) located a gun found in Osasosifo's path. The gun, a nine-millimeter semi-automatic, was reportedly stolen from a vehicle in Murfreesboro in 2023.
During an interview with detectives, Osasosifo admitted to having a gun and shooting it during the fight at the park, according to officials.
State Rep. Bo Mitchell (D-Nashville) posted a series of tweets on X in response to the shooting.
"Bellevue, I am so sorry that there has been another fatality of our youth with firearms. Please either support me or work with the dark side to determine the direction of our community!!!! I am sick of children dying in the name of a redneck cause," one tweet read.
Nashville Mayor Freddie O'Connell released a statement, which reads:
My heart breaks tonight for the families who experienced first hand the tragedy of gun violence in a park in Bellevue. I am grateful to first responders who immediately rendered aid as well as the Metro police officers who quickly apprehended a possible suspect. We are awaiting further details from the investigation.
A Metro Nashville Public Schools spokesperson sent a statement to News 2 following the shooting, which said, in part:
We are saddened by the tragic killing of Aayden Hayes and shooting of his sister last night in Bellevue. Our thoughts are with their family, friends, and the school communities grieving at this time. Our Student Support Services team will be providing grief counseling for school communities directly impacted by this tragedy at our Promising Scholars sites.
Principal Seth Swihart at Bellevue Middle School provided the following message to the Bellevue Middle community: “As many of you know by now, there was a shooting last night at Red Caboose Park that resulted in the death of Aayden Hayes, a student who had just completed 8th grade here at BMS. Aayden had many friends and was a kind and caring student who was easy to like and get along with. Our heart breaks for his family, friends, and for this community who have lost a young person to gun violence.”
According to MNPS, both Aayden's sister and Osasosifo attended James Lawson High School this past school year.
Meanwhile, the Bellevue Farmers Market, which operates at Red Caboose Park, assured community members in a Facebook post the market would still be open on Thursday, May 30:
Due to last night's violence and loss at Red Caboose Park, our community is facing a challenging time. Despite this, the Bellevue Farmers Market will remain open as scheduled with increased police presence for everyone's safety. Your presence at the market is a show of solidarity and supports local vendors who rely on your patronage. Please spread the word and join us at the market to demonstrate our love and support for Bellevue and each other. Thank you all, and I hope to see you this afternoon from 4-7.
Investigators believe two groups of teens met at the park to fight amid an ongoing dispute between girls in the two groups.
Osasosifo will be charged with criminal homicide and attempted criminal homicide in juvenile court.