By: Richard L. Smith
Authorities in Essex County are continuing to search for a suspect who gunned down a man and injured a young boy near a park in Belleville Saturday afternoon. 
Police said the gunman opened fire in the 100 block of Mill Street around 2 p.m.
The Essex County Prosecutor's Office identified the victim as 37-year-old Francis Medina of Belleville, who suffered multiple gunshot wounds. Despite being rushed to Clara Maass Medical Center, Medina was pronounced dead at 3:17 p.m.
According to The Essex County Prosecutor's Office, in the same violent encounter, a 4-year-old boy was caught in the crossfire, sustaining non-life-threatening injuries.
He is currently in stable condition at a local hospital. The shooting, which involved over a dozen shots fired, has shaken the quiet community that sits across from Branch Brook Park.
In a swift response, authorities across the region were alerted to be on the lookout for the vehicle used in the shooting.
Paterson Police later found the vehicle, now a crucial piece of evidence, abandoned in the single-digit block of Jasper Saturday night.
As the Essex County Prosecutor's Office leads the investigation, the motive behind this harrowing incident remains unclear.
The community is left reeling from the shock, and the search for the perpetrator intensifies.