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Car connected to murder of 17-year-old on his birthday found in St. Louis Co.

"It just hurts so bad to see our young people getting shot down like that. He had just come out of the china place right next to him was the bag with his Chinese food," witness Bobby Williams said.

ST. LOUIS — A mother is grieving the loss of her son after he was shot and killed in broad daylight on his 17th birthday.

Police identified him as 17-year-old Armond Latimore. The morning of his birthday he posted a message on Facebook letting the world know how happy he was to turn 17. But shortly after he posted the message to social media someone took his life away.

It happened outside of a restaurant near North Grand Boulevard and Sullivan Avenue. At 1 p.m. Saturday, police responded to a report of a shooting in the 3100 block of North Grand. Officers found Armond Latimore suffering from a gunshot wound. He later died at a nearby hospital.

A vehicle police believe was used as a getaway car in Armond's murder was found on fire in north St. Louis County.

The red Pontiac G8 was taken in a carjacking on Aug. 2 at N. 14th and Sullivan, police said. Officers found it engulfed in flames Tuesday night near the south entrance to Spanish Lake Park.

Bobby Williams said on Saturday he was right next door to the restaurant, and he witnessed the aftermath of the shooting. He said he’d heard a single gunshot and when he went to see what happened he was devastated to learn someone had been shot.

"It just hurts so bad to see our young people getting shot down like that. He had just come out of the china place right next to him was the bag with his Chinese food," Williams said.

And what he saw next would forever change his life.

"By the time I got over there, there was several other people and you could see there was a shot right there and he was bleeding everywhere the ears and all."

That’s when he immediately tried to help, but it was too late. He said this isn’t the first shooting he's seen in this neighborhood and he's fed up with it.

Andy Krumsieg has lived in the area for almost 25 years and he agrees.

"I don't know that it's changed a whole lot, unfortunately. Some of this stuff has become our normal and it shouldn't be that," Krumsieg.

They also agree collectively with the area alderman Brandon Bosley who said it’s going to take a community effort to minimize this type of violence.

"We have very broken communities we are dying right now from lack of support from ourselves-- Unless we start looking out for one another you will continue to see the same behaviors perpetuate," Bosley said.

And people who live there are hoping the crime will change sooner rather than later.

"It’s very painful and it hurts so bad we have to move now to how we going to prevent this from happening," Williams said.

Police do not have any details on potential suspects at this time.

Anyone with information is asked to call CrimeStoppers at 866-371-TIPS (8477).

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