Suspect in shooting of 11-year-old East Bay girl surrenders

ANTIOCH — A 23-year-old man identified as the suspect in the shooting of an 11-year-old girl last week turned himself into authorities Monday, police said

Ryan Hardy, of Antioch, surrendered at the San Francisco Sheriff’s Office, Antioch police Lt. Bill Whitaker said in a statement. Police did not release any additional details about his surrender. They intend to hand over the case to the Contra Costa County District Attorney’s Office later this week.

The girl wounded in the shooting went by ambulance to UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospital in Oakland and was expected to recover. Police said she remains hospitalized but is expected to survive and has shown signs of improvement.

An explosion of gunfire in the parking lot of an apartment complex in the 3900 block of Delta Fair Boulevard hit the girl in the head as she sat in the backseat of a car on Jan. 5. Officers found the car at a nearby shopping center and rendered aid to the girl until Contra Costa County Fire Protection District crews arrived with paramedics.

Whitaker said detectives have determined the shooting appears to be a case of mistaken identity regarding the intended target and that the girl’s family was “not involved in any criminal activity at the time of the shooting.”

Whitaker said detectives have identified several people who helped Hardy evade police.

Police asked anyone with any additional information pertinent to the case to contact Det. John Cox at jcox@antiochca.gov or 925-481-8147.