'It's frightening.' Raleigh family find bullet in home believed to be from celebratory gunfire
A family said they're still frightened after a stray bullet flew into their house in southeast Raleigh on New Year’s Eve. Investigators said they suspect the shooting may have been related to celebratory gunfire.
Over the New Year's Eve weekend, Raleigh police said they responded to over 34 calls related to shots fired or celebratory shots.
Paulette Njoroge said while she's thankful everyone in her family is OK, she's terrified knowing someone could have been seriously hurt or killed after a bullet was found in their home on Sosa Road.
"I was pretty much laying down and the bullet came in through the window, and it looks like it went straight through the wall," said Njoroge. "I didn't hear it come in, probably because of the fireworks."
Reckless shooting in Raleigh on New Year’s Eve sent a bullet through Njoroge’s sister's bedroom window and the wall — just inches away from the bed.
"I could literally have been standing here and it would have got me through the chest or upper body ... its frightening," said Njoroge.
"I knew [celebratory gunfire] happens ... people end up killed but it," she added. "I wouldn't think it would be right where I was sleeping."
Njoroge said she thinks the shooting may have happened moments after she went downstairs.
The homeowner, Rahab Kimani, said she was spending New Year's Eve at a church service. Then, the next day, a broken blind caught the family's attention.
"We have to live with a bullet in the house right now," said Kimani.
"It's alarming. It's a whole day afterward and we didn't even hear or see the actual bullet but somebody would have died that night," added Njoroge.
The shooting in southeast Raleigh was just one example of celebratory gunfire reported across the Triangle over the weekend.
Durham police are investigating after a great-grandmother was killed on New Year's Eve from celebratory gunfire. Neighbors said Delores Burwell was visiting friends in the 1500 block of Robinhood Road when she was hit from a stray bullet. Burwell died later from her injuries at a local hospital.
In Raleigh on July 4, 2021, a woman watching fireworks in a backyard was hit by a bullet falling from the sky. The bullet left a bruise on her back, but didn't penetrate her skin.
Then, in 2019, the New Year's celebration in downtown Raleigh took an unexpected turn when a stray bullet hit a 22-year-old woman in the abdomen and damaged part of her lung and stomach.
For Njoroge and Kimani, they said they're grateful to be alive, but want someone to be held accountable.
"Somebody can lose a life if somebody else is celebrating with a gun. It's unacceptable," said Kimani. "This should stop. I believe we should have more awareness that celebratory gunfire is dangerous. It can end somebody's life. It has ended multiple people's lives."
"It's not something to be playing around with ... people's lives are at stake," added Njoroge.
Raleigh police said around this time last year, they received 23 calls about shots fired or celebratory shots and around 27 calls in 2019.
