North Carolina offers $25,000 reward in 2016 murder of A’yanna Allen, 7 — who was shot 13 times in her grandmother’s bed

A 7-year-old North Carolina girl was shot to death while sleeping inside her grandmother’s bed, according to authorities.

A’yanna Allen, 7, was a second grade student at Koontz Elementary School in Salisbury.

On December 4, 2016, gunfire struck the child inside her grandmother Shirley Robinson’s home in Salisbury, WCNC-TV reported.

The victim was shot at least 13 times in her sleep, the station reported. An autopsy revealed A’yanna had 20 firearm-related wounds.

Responding officers discovered Robinson, 56, had also been shot, according to authorities. Robinson survived her injuries.

Salisbury is located about a 30-mile drive northeast from Charlotte.

Authorities have previously said the alleged shooter was targeting someone inside Robinson’s house, according to WCNC-TV.

A’yanna’s other grandmother, April Woodberry, believes the shooting occurred as part of retaliation in connection with a separate alleged murder that happened near Robinson’s home the same evening, per WJZY-TV.

The child was survived by her mother, several brothers and sisters, and grandparents, according to her obituary.

In February 2017, a few months after the child’s death, Robinson pleaded for someone to come forward with information regarding the unsolved case, WJZY-TV reported.

“I know y’all know something, tell something. If you hear something tell it, because I need closure for A’yanna,” Robinson said at the time.

More than two years after the fatal shooting, the Salisbury Police Department shared a Facebook post in memory of A’yanna.

“We cannot rest until we put the person responsible for this in jail,” the department wrote.

Below the post, a user named Missie Weaver commented and said she was A’yanna’s kindergarten teacher.

“She was such a bubbly, happy little girl,” Weaver wrote of the child.

The murder of the 7-year-old girl remains unsolved nearly 10 years later.

On Monday, September 14, North Carolina Governor Josh Stein announced a state reward in the case, according to his office.

Stein is offering up to $25,000 for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the person involved in the killing of A’yanna and the attempted murder of her grandmother, officials said.

“We must use every tool at our disposal to pursue justice for victims,” Stein said in a statement. “I urge North Carolinians who have information about this case to contact local law enforcement and help us hold A’yanna Allen’s murderer accountable.”

The governor’s office encourages anyone with information on A’yanna’s murder to call Salisbury police at (704) 638-5333, Rowan County Crime Stoppers at (866) 639-5245, or the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation at (919) 662-4500.

The investigation into the unsolved killing remains open, according to authorities.