A 12-year-old boy was shot and killed while he slept in his family's Harris County apartment earlier today. Positioned near the North Shore Ninth Grade Campus, the fatal incident occurred in the 13900 block of Alderson Street at the Crossings at Alderson apartments, according to FOX 26 Houston. Sheriff Ed Gonzalez revealed that the young victim was in a bedroom with his two sisters, aged 6 and 7, when someone fired shots through the window.

Awake after the shooting, the sheriff said that it appears the shooter may have been targeting the specific apartment unit, but the motive or intended target remains unclear. The boy, whose dreams would have been filled with the promise of yet another dawn, was instead pronounced dead at the scene. As reported by ABC 13 Houston, authorities are now on the lookout for a pickup truck observed leaving the scene posthaste, though no descriptive details of the vehicle have been released.

"Anytime it involves a child, it just hurts a little bit more. It's just heartbreaking thinking this child should be getting ready for school very soon and unfortunately, that's not going to happen," Gonzalez told ABC 13 Houston, highlighting the acute pain the community feels when violence steals the life of one so young. The boy's mother and another adult man were present in the apartment during the shooting but were not injured. The shock of such violence shatters the serenity of night, ripping a child from the veil of sleep to the finality of death.

Harris County officials have sprang into action, canvassing for surveillance video and collecting evidence in a bid to apprehend those responsible. The Sheriff's Office urges anyone with information about the tragic shooting to come forward and has provided the contact number for Crime Stoppers at (713)222-TIPS.