Two 17-year-olds were shot at while walking past GOP gubernatorial candidate Lee Zeldin's Long Island home Sunday afternoon. Zeldin reported that his family was safe despite his teenage daughters being home at the time of the incident.
The Republican hopeful and his wife were not home when the shooting took place.
The wounded teens reportedly took refuge in the Zeldins' front yard after getting shot. "One of the bullets was actually found 30 feet from where [my daughters were] sitting," said the congressman during a news conference later in the day.
A spokesman for NYC police said that investigators, "have no reason to believe there is any connection between the shooting and the residence."
In July, Zeldin was assaulted by a man who approached him during a campaign rally and thrust a sharp object near his head. Zeldin escaped the incident unharmed.
A month before the attack, a swastika was painted on one of Zeldin's campaign sings in Huntington, New York.
The congressman said he was unaware of the identities of the two teenagers. Police have yet to release any information in the case.
Zeldin has focused a large portion of his campaign on amending the state's crime laws to increase punishment for violent assaults.
"Like so many New Yorkers, crime has literally made its way to our front door," Zeldin was quoted as saying Sunday evening.