US News

11-YEAR-OLD QUEENS BOY SHOT

“Daddy, I think I got shot!”

Those were the blood-curdling words haunting a Queens dad today as he recounted how his 11-year-old son answered the door at their home last night – and was shot by a hooded trigger man who had been gunning for his older brother.

“He opened the door. He thought it was his [older] brother [Tony],” recounted Tony Falconer Sr., 43, from the doorway of the family’s Springfield Gardens home.

Falconer’s son, sixth-grader Tyshawn, was in stable condition at Long Island Jewish Hospital after miraculously surviving a bullet to his chest. The dad said the boy had been shot amid a dispute between his older son and other young men over a girl.

Holding back rage and tears, Falconer recalled the fateful moment when the doorbell rang around 8:45 p.m.

“The guy asked for his brother [Tony]. He said, ‘He’s not here,’ ” Falconer said. “All he saw was the guy went into his jacket, a white hoodie, and all he saw was the fire from the gun. He shot him point-blank range.

“He ran upstairs I met him halfway upstairs, blood was coming out of his mouth.

“He said, ‘Daddy I think I got shot.’ I took off his shirt. I saw the hole in the middle of his chest. I almost fainted myself. I couldn’t keep my emotions back. I was losing it.”

Falconer called 911 while his wife, Stephanie, comforted the bloodied boy on the bed.

“He told his mom he’s sorry he opened the door,” said Falconer, the owner of a tire store. “We teach him not to open the door to strangers.”

He described the shooter as a light- skinned black man, freckles on his face and a mole on his cheek.

“I would say he’s a coward. Pick on your own size. I hope the cops get him before I do,” Falconer said.

Police questioned Tyshawn’s older brother Tony, 16, who was not at home when the gunman rang, over whether the vicious act was related to a shooting three weeks ago, according to the dad.

Tony said he is praying for his little brother to pull through.

“I don’t know why [someone shot Tyshawn]. Someone is sending a message, a message that someone wants me dead,” Tony said. “I’m scared upset, that’s my brother. It wasn’t my fault he got shot.”

Tony’s dad interjected, “It was over a girl. It’s rivalry s— going on. He said he’s not involved. He [Tony] had no beef with anyone.”

An aunt, Erlenda Falconer, had just visited her nephew in the hospital after surgery.

“He told me, ‘Auntie, thank God I’ve got a second chance'” she said. “It’s heartless, cold-blooded stuff.”