A 12-year-old boy and his 11-year-old sister were traumatized by two thugs who robbed their lemonade stand after threatening them with a gun, according to the kids’ father.
David Byrne said his two children were selling lemonade in their south Boston neighborhood when they were approached by two juveniles at 4:40 p.m. on Wednesday.
‘This is appalling; this is grotesque. This is something that should not happen to young kids.’
The juveniles said they wanted to buy lemonade but walked away after claiming they didn’t have any money. A few minutes later they returned, and one flashed a black gun in his waistband.
“My kids immediately just put their hands up and said, ‘Take whatever you want.’ So, I’m proud of my kids for that, and I’m proud of them for basically protecting each other but also being smart in that bad situation,” Byrne said to WBZ-TV.
The juveniles allegedly took all of the cash that the children had earned and fled on foot.
“This is appalling; this is grotesque. This is something that should not happen to young kids,” the father said to WHDH-TV.
“Can’t have a gun and can’t be robbing lemonade stands. It’s as easy as that,” he added.
He went on to say that the children were sad and a little bit disturbed by what happened.
Boston police said they were searching for the juveniles and that no arrests had been made. They did release video and images of suspects they believed to be the juveniles responsible for the armed robbery.
RELATED: Video captures man walking up to kids’ lemonade stand and running away after snatching their money
Boston Police Dept.
Residents of the neighborhood expressed their shock at the incident.
“It’s awful and scary and definitely something you don’t want to come home to after a night. It’s disappointing. I didn’t expect it on our street,” Suzanna Ruotolo said.
Boston City Councilor Ed Flynn said the residents were getting together to make sure the lemonade stand would reopen with the support of the community.
“Let’s show them how much love and support the Southie community has for them. It is also our understanding that 50% of proceeds will be donated to a local organization working to prevent gun violence,” Flynn said.
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Lemonade stand, Armed robbery, Boston, Juvenile crime, Crime
