ORLANDO, Fla. — Carver Shores has been the site of two drive-by shootings, in addition to the gang-related one in late August that took the lives of two people, but the number of shootings in Orlando overall have dropped 30% in the past year, Orlando Police Chief Eric Smith said Thursday at a news conference.

A 6-year-old and a 19-year-old died in the shooting on Aug. 29 on Poppy Avenue in Orlando. That shooting left 6-year-old Alahliyah Hashim dead and her mother injured. Isaiyah Wright, 19, was also killed in the shooting. Investigators say the girl and her mother were not the intended targets of the shooting. The mother remains in the hospital.

According to Smith, rival gangs got into a squabble on social media, leading three teen boys and a young man to get into a car and commit the drive-by shooting. They went to the wrong house, Smith said.

Since the shooting, 18-year-old Ricky Raymond Bowery Jr., two 17-year-old boys and a 15-year-old boy have been arrested in connection with the shooting and face first-degree homicide charges.

Spectrum News 13 is not naming the teen suspects because they are minors.

Smith said his priorities are to reduce violent crime and build neighborhood relations. Smith said he has visited the Carver Shores community in the past and has held community meetings throughout Orlando's six districts to listen to citizens to help combat violent crime.

Since Smith took over as police chief, Orlando has hired 133 new officers and police have increased patrols, particularly in some areas where community members like those in the Parramore area feel they are underserved, Smith said. Police also work to mentor and connect with more young people to let them know about activities other than crime, Smith said.

However, he said police need the community's help with tips on events that could lead to similar violent incidents.

“We need the community to come forward if you see something like that (Aug. 29 shooting and the lead-up to it)," Smith said. "Let us know what’s going on because we basically move our officers around based on the issues, but we need to know what we’re looking for."

He also acknowledged that neighbors are reticent to come forward with information about who commits shootings and said police officers also need help identifying suspects.

In the Carver Shores community, police are installing cameras near Poppy Park, near the site of the Aug. 29 shooting, Smith said. 

He is also working to partner with companies so doorbell cameras can be handed out to neighbors for free so they can monitor what happens in the community and, if something happens, provide that footage to the police department to help solve crimes.

Smith said police are working to get as many guns off the street as possible and have seized 1,300 guns, up 36% in his first year as police chief. He pointed out that most of the guns used in violent crimes are stolen.

The violent crime rate in Orlando overall is down 10%, Smith said.

The rate at which homicides are solved and cases are closed is up to 80% from 37%, Smith said.

Police also work to mentor and connect with more young people to let them know about activities other than crime, Smith said. They need to do more to change the mindsets of young people by showing them there is a better way to live their lives, Smith said.

Orlando City Commissioner Bakari Burns represents the area where the shooting happened, and he said there’s a plan to add some surveillance cameras in Poppy Park, near where the shooting happened.

“This is a popular gathering place for Carver Shores community, but also surrounding neighborhoods, so we’re getting three cameras in the park that will have live feed to OPD,” Burns said in a previous interview with Spectrum News 13.

"We have kids who are killing kids now," Burns said. "So, we have to just come together as a community, collaborate and bring the necessary resources; one so we can stop the flow of these guns to our youth but also, if they already have them, we need to get them out of their hands."

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