13-Year-Old Boy Is Brain Dead After Being Shot in Head Outside Dunkin' — and Mom Hopes for 'Miracle' By Christina Coulter

A 13-year-old boy is on life support after being shot in the head outside a Dunkin’ in Queens, N.Y., and his family says they are praying for a miracle.

Police tell PEOPLE that on Sept. 22 at about 8:21 a.m., officers responded to a 911 call about a male shot in from an address in Cambria Heights. When officers arrived, they found a 13-year-old boy with a gunshot wound to his head.

EMS rushed him to the hospital in critical condition. No arrests have been made, police said, and an investigation is ongoing. Authorities are reviewing surveillance as part of the investigation, per ABC7NY and NBC New York.

According to , CBS New York, ABC7NY and Gothamist, a suspect approached the teen and his friends before a single shot was fired, and the suspect fled on a scooter.

Relatives identified the victim as Sanjay Samuel. He was taken to Cohen Children’s Medical Center in critical condition, per NBC New York and CBS New York.

Doctors later told the family that Samuel is brain-dead and remains unresponsive. His mother, Vilene Griffith, told CBS New York, “Sanjay’s not doing well. Sanjay’s brain dead.”

She added, “Nothing is going on. He’s not breathing on his own. He’s not doing nothing.”

The mother had a message for her son’s shooter as well: “Why? Sanjay was only 13 years old.”

Per Gothamist, Griffith said she may face “the hardest decision of her life” if there are no signs of improvement and life support must be withdrawn.

But Griffith is holding out hope, telling CBS that “miracles do happen, and I’m trusting God for Sanjay to get up.”

Neighbors expressed shock. “We stand with the family … this is a son that you like to have,” Valerie Small told ABC7NY.

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On a GoFundMe launched by the family, relatives described Samuel as “a vibrant, fun-loving teenager” who enjoys basketball, fishing, dancing and playing the drums.

They wrote that his siblings are devastated, and that if he survives, he will need long-term rehabilitation and ongoing medical care.

As of Sept. 24, the fundraiser had raised more than $8,000 toward its $13,000 goal.

Anyone with information is asked to call the NYPD Crime Stoppers tip line at 1-800-577-TIPS, according to NBC New York.