A young girl has spoken for the first time of how she feared death after being shot in a racially aggravated attack in Bristol.
The 9-year-old was hit around 1.30pm in Chakeshill Drive in Brentry, a suburb about three miles north of the city centre.
She told an anti-racism charity: ‘I thought they had killed me’.
In the weeks since the attack, the youngster has been ‘too frightened to leave the house’ or make it into school after being ‘traumatised’.
Bushra Shaikh, founder of Run Racism Out – a British Pakistani-led anti-racism organisation, said she was drafted in by police to look after the girl’s mental well-being.
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She told Metro: ‘The family wish to remain anonymous to the public and have their privacy upheld.
‘I can share, our Run Racism Out organisation was contacted by the police to help with the young girl’s mental health.
‘She told us ‘I thought they had killed me’.
‘The offender shouted racial slurs while firing at her. She has been left so frightened that even going to school is difficult. We are helping the family with the trauma.’
The offender, described as a white teenager, shot at the girl three times with pellets while shouting racist slurs, police said.
He was said to be around 17-18 years old, 5’11”, with dark blonde hair, a slim face and wearing a ‘distinctive’ blue padded coat.
The teen was also riding a black electric scooter with white writing.
A second person is believed to have been involved in the incident, the force said.
Police officials referred the girl and her family to Stand Against Racism and Inequality (SARI), a local anti-racism charity.
Racially aggravated assaults are one of the highest reported types of hate crimes in the UK – 109,823 took place in 2022, up 19% from the year before.
Chief Inspector Keith Smith said: ‘This is a deeply troubling incident targeting a young child and we understand the impact this has had, not only on the victim and their family but also the wider community.
‘Officers are actively pursuing lines of enquiry and there will continue to be reassurance patrols in the area.
‘We would also like to stress that at this time we do believe this to be an isolated incident and would encourage anyone with pertinent information to come forward.’
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