On the afternoon of April 14, 2026, 12-year-old Mhilo Young was killed in a mass shooting outside the Circle Seven convenience store in the 700 block of Kenilworth Avenue NE, Washington, D.C. Dozens of shots were fired in broad daylight; police believe the group the boys were with was the intended target, though Mhilo was not thought to be a specific target. He was taken to a nearby hospital with critical injuries and later died.

Mhilo had been a student at KIPP DC Valor Academy and played for the Metro Hurricanes youth football team. Family remembered him as a protective older brother to two younger siblings, a big jokester who loved basketball and football and didn’t have a bad bone in his body. A 14-year-old, Tyale Coates, was also killed at the scene.

Authorities say at least two gunmen fled and the convenience store’s security cameras were not working. The Metropolitan Police Department is offering a $50,000 reward for information leading to arrests and convictions; no arrests have been announced. If anyone knew Mhilo or has information about that afternoon, please come forward to investigators.