On October 24, 2024, in the parking lot of Ottenheimer Park at 7201 Dahlia Drive in Little Rock, 19-year-old Daniel Mendez was fatally wounded in a shooting. Officers found him with an apparent gunshot wound; Metropolitan Emergency Medical Services attempted life-saving measures but he was pronounced dead at the scene. A second 19-year-old, Lakeithon Harris, was also shot that evening but survived after reaching a hospital.

Investigators from the Little Rock Police Department’s Homicide Detectives and the Crime Scene Search Unit processed the parking lot, sought witnesses and video, and recovered two firearms: a Glock 45 9mm with an extended magazine and a bloodied Micro Draco styled after an AK-47. Daniel Mendez, born March 26, 2005, was taken to the Arkansas State Crime Lab for autopsy. No suspects have been publicly identified and the investigation remains active.

If anyone saw the shooting at Ottenheimer Park or has surveillance footage from the area that evening, please contact the Little Rock Police Department.