The 7-year-old Erie boy who was shot in the head as he walked near his east Erie home last Thursday has died, according to the Erie Police Department.

Antonio “Espn” Yarger Jr. died Monday at Children's Hospital in Pittsburgh.  He was flown there after suffering a critical head injury.

Six to eight other kids were walking with the boy near Downing and Prospect Avenues around 7:30 p.m. Thursday when someone fired three shots, according to Deputy Chief Mike Nolan.

One of those shots hit Yarger in the head.  He was the only person hit by gunfire.

Deputy Chief Nolan said the other children at the scene and their parents are cooperating with the police investigation.  Those interviews are ongoing.

As to whether or not this was a drive-by-shooting incident, Deputy Chief Nolan confirmed that is one theory that police are working with.

Nolan said police are making progress in the probe.  At last word, they had not recovered the weapon used in the crime, and police declined to say what type of gun was used.

Police are reviewing surveillance video captured in the neighborhood, as well as evidence collected at the scene including shell casings, as they search for the suspects.

A GoFundMe had been set up for Yarger.

The shooting comes just days after a teen shot another teen inside Erie High during a school day.

"This gun violence can't become the new normal in Erie," said Nolan.