A 15-year-old schoolboy was last night in hospital after being wounded when gunshots were fired outside the home of acquitted murder accused Jahni Everett Bean.

Armed Police went to the scene and sealed off the area.

The shooting occurred at around 9 p.m. after friends and family members gathered at the Warwick home of 20-year-old Mr. Bean to celebrate his acquittal of the 2001 murder of Tekle Mallory.

Mr. Bean was acquitted in the Supreme Court yesterday after Puisne Judge Archie Warner found he had no case to answer.

Mr. Mallory, 22, died on July 21, 2001 after being stabbed when involved in a fight at the Ice Queen in Paget.

Both Mr. Bean and his cousin Quincy Brangman, 24, stood jointly accused of his murder.

The Royal Gazette understands Mr. Bean was standing with friends outside his Jones Village, Khyber Pass home at around 9 p.m. talking to a relative when he looked up and allegedly spotted someone standing in the trees near his home.

Sensing something was wrong, sources said Mr. Bean began to run into his home, at which point several bullets were fired, scattering the other people gathered outside.

While no one else was hit, it is believed the 15-year-old CedarBridge Academy student was shot in the foot.

He was rushed to King Edward VII Memorial Hospital where he was examined and at 1.30 this morning, the youth was undergoing surgery to remove the bullet. After the shooting, the Khyber Pass area was closed off to the public and Police Emergency Response Team (ERT) and Serious Crime Unit officers were called to the scene.

Early this morning Police spokesman Dwayne Caines confirmed that the incident had taken place just after 9 p.m.

And when contacted by The Royal Gazette, Supt. Randy Liverpool said the Police Serious Crime Unit had set up a major incident room to investigate the crime under the command of Det. Chief Insp. Stuart Crockwell.

Witnesses to this incident are being asked to call Det. Chief Insp. Crockwell at 299-4315 or call the Confidential Crimestoppers Hotline at 1-800-623-8477.