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Woodbridge carnival shooting suspect photos released, reward increased

Police say a 14-year-old girl was shot and wounded in her abdomen during the "Kiwanis Karnival" at Gar-Field High School.

WOODBRIDGE, Va. — Editor's Note: The video above originally aired on April 16. 

Prince William County Police have released new photos of a man wanted in connection to the shooting of a teenage girl during a carnival held outside a high school in mid-April. 

According to the Prince William County Police Department, multiple shots were fired just after 9:15 p.m. in the parking lot of Gar-Field High School after a verbal altercation occurred between two groups at the Kiwanis Karnival on April 15. A 14-year-old girl was shot in the abdomen during the violence and was rushed to the hospital. Investigators said they expected the girl to recover.

Though the photos are very blurry, police have put out a suspect description for a tall, thin man last seen wearing a red sweatshirt with white writing on the sleeve and white writing on the chest, black pants, and white sneakers. 

The department is also offering an additional $1,000 for information that leads to an arrest and conviction in the case, bringing the total reward to $6,000 (the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosive is offering $5,000). 

RELATED: Carnival reopens Saturday in Woodbridge, one day after teen girl was shot

The Kiwanis Karnival has been an annual tradition for the past 20 years in Woodbridge, serving as the group's primary fundraiser for the year. 

According to the Kiwanis Club of Woodbridge, six off-duty Prince William County police officers patrolled the carnival during the time of Friday's shooting. 

"It was just tons of teenagers and parents with their kids," Austin Green, who attended the carnival with his girlfriend on Friday night, said in and interview with WUSA9. "As we were getting on the ride, that’s when we heard the shots ring out. One second everyone is kind of frozen, then the next thing you see everybody running back towards the parking lot.”

At first, Green and others wondered if the popping sounds they were hearing came from fireworks or car exhaust. However, after seeing the police response, he soon knew something dangerous had happened.

"You see Prince William police walking around with semi-automatic rifles. You’re like, 'Wow what is going on? Is there an active shooter?'" he said. "You think of funnel cakes and fried Oreos. You don’t think of gunfire.”

RELATED: Police investigate shooting at carnival at Gar-Field High in Woodbridge

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