A GoFundMe campaign is raising money for the family of a 14-year-old Chicago boy who was paralyzed from the chest down after being struck by a bullet while walking home from school earlier this month. Prosecutors have said the gunman fired the shot more than a block away, intending to shoot someone else.
Prosecutors said Muhammad Sayadul Boshar, 19, fired five or six shots at a car carrying a former soccer teammate during a dispute in West Ridge. One of the bullets traveled about a block and a half before striking the boy as he unlocked a Lime scooter in the 6300 block of North Rockwell Street.
The injured boy, identified only as Anas, had been walking with friends to pick up his younger siblings from elementary school, according to the fundraiser. The bullet struck his spine. Boshar faces charges including attempted murder and has been ordered detained while the case is pending.
The fundraiser is intended to help Anas’ family pay for medical care, rehabilitation and therapy. Organizers said the family is also dealing with lost income and time away from work and school.
Anas was 5 when his family came to the United States in 2018 after fleeing Myanmar as members of the Rohingya refugee community and traveling through Malaysia, according to the GoFundMe page. The family became U.S. citizens as soon as they were eligible.
The campaign describes Anas as an honors student and avid soccer player who admires Lionel Messi and supported Argentina during the World Cup. Organizers called him his family’s “hope and dream for the future.”
The fundraiser was created by a small group that has supported the family since they arrived in the United States. Rachel Bronson and John Matthews are holding the donations on the family’s behalf, and organizers said all money raised will be used to cover the family’s expenses.
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