A quiet Florida City neighborhood turned into a crime scene overnight when a barrage of bullets tore through homes, leaving a 90-year-old man wounded in his bedroom.
The terrifying incident unfolded just after midnight on Monday near Southwest 10th Street and Sixth Court. Gunfire erupted outside, sending bullets ripping through multiple houses, including the home of Rafael Cotto, who was inside, unwinding with a crossword puzzle.
One bullet tore through the shutters, smashed against a wall, passed through a door, and struck Cotto in the shoulder. His grandson, Anthony De La Rosa, was inside when chaos erupted. “I didn’t know it was gunshots until my grandpa started screaming,” De La Rosa recalled, still shaken by the night’s events.
As bullets rained down on the neighborhood, De La Rosa realized just how widespread the shooting was. “Gunshots hit here, hit that house over there, that house, and that house and I think that corner one over there,” he said, pointing out the extent of the damage.
For the family, the horror intensified when they rushed to Cotto’s aid. The elderly man had been struck as the bullet ricocheted inside his bedroom.
“It grazed him right in the arm and there was an impact right here on his shoulder,” De La Rosa explained.
Panic took over as family members rushed in, trying to process what had just happened.
“It was a scary moment, you know? You don’t see that many cops in your house, so it was scary for everybody,” he added.
First responders quickly transported Cotto to Jackson South Medical Center while police flooded the scene, marking evidence across the street. The family could do nothing but hope and pray as Cotto, fragile at 90 years old, fought through the pain. “It was scary, you know? He’s 90 years old, he’s fragile,” De La Rosa said.
Doctors are now working to remove the bullet and save his arm. His family fears permanent nerve damage, as he has already lost feeling in his right arm. “He’s losing feeling in his right arm, it hit a nerve,” De La Rosa shared.
Despite the terrifying ordeal, the family remains hopeful that Cotto will recover and return to the things he loves. “He loves to cook, loves his crossword puzzles, all of those coloring books and all of that. He loves those,” his grandson said.
For now, Cotto remains hospitalized, alert but in pain, while his family waits anxiously for updates.
As of now, police have not named any suspects, and the investigation continues.
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