Girl, 10, shot dead in drive-by shooting as she played in the street with her friends

A "cheerful" 10-year-old girl has tragically died after she was injured in a drive-by shooting while playing in the street.

Rafaelly da Rocha Vieira was just two days away from her 11th birthday when she was hit in the random attack on Saturday.

The youngster had been playing with friends on the busy street in Sao Joao de Meriti, Brazil, when a stray bullet struck her in the chest.

Rafaelly's mother rushed out of her house immediately afterwards and raised her into her arms, say witnesses, reportedly shouting "my daughter!"

The shots were reported by locals to have come from a passing car, according to Civil Police.

Rafaelly was still alive when she was rushed to a local emergency unit, but she soon went into cardiac arrest.

The girl had been playing with friends on a busy street in Brazil, when a stray bullet struck her in the chest (Newsflash)

Rafaelly was rushed to hospital but medics were sadly unable to save her (Newsflash)

Attempts to save her life by medics were sadly unsuccessful.

Recalling what he saw at the scene, local man Luiz Claudio da Silva said: "On hearing the shots, her mother comes down shouting loudly, 'My daughter, my daughter!'

"We saw that it was little Rafaelly who had been hit and was lying on the ground. We don't know who the perpetrators of the shots were nor whom they were for.

"I know they went into a street with lots of children, we are not used to this. Shooting at random."

Carolaine Esteves, who lives on the street, meanwhile said the street had been full of people chatting and children playing before the shots were heard, causing a "stampede".

Her grieving uncle said she was a 'lively, cheerful child' (Newsflash)

She then saw the mother "picking her up off the ground and carrying her in her arms."

The following day local residents staged a protest at the crime scene, setting fire to wooden crates and sofas and demanding justice.

Rafaelly's grieving family have since spoken of their loss, with uncle Carlos Henrique da Rocha paying tribute to her "happy" and kind personality.

He said: "Rafaelly was a lively, cheerful child. Everyone saw that she respected the elderly, she was helpful.

"She loved playing, so much so that she was playing in the street at the time of the incident. She was a normal child, she still had everything to live for.

"She was happy because she was going to have her birthday party on Saturday."

Civil Police are investigating the case and have begun reviewing CCTV footage to try to identify the gunmen.