Teen, 15, sought by NYPD as third gunman in fatal Bronx subway shooting
Cops have identified a 15-year-old boy as the third gunman in a Bronx subway station shooting that left one dead and five wounded as new details emerged about the conflict between two warring gangs that sparked the deadly violence, police said Saturday.
The teen, a Bronx resident, was identified hours after his alleged accomplice, 16-year-old Langel Jones, was ordered held without bail on murder charges for the Monday night gang-related shooting at the Mt. Eden station on the No. 4 line.
A 14-year-old boy who swapped shots with the two teens and was wounded in a barrage of bullets is also in custody.
Cops are circulating a wanted poster about the 15-year-old stating that he is “wanted for murder.” His name is being withheld by the Daily News because he is a minor and so far not criminally charged.
The teen is believed to be a member of the “D Block” crew, which often clashes with the “Burnside” crew, cops said.
The three teens opened fire on the train as it entered the station then continued to shoot as they ran out onto the platform, cops said.
Jones and his accomplice were firing from the south end of the platform while the 14-year-old was shooting from the north-end. A “chance encounter” between the gang members sparked the shooting, cops said.
An estimated 19 shots were fired, hitting six people, most of them innocent bystanders caught in the crossfire.
Jones was charged as an adult with murder, assault, reckless endangerment and other charges.
One of the bullets the teen fired struck 35-year-old Mexican immigrant Obed Beltrán-Sánchez in the chest, prosecutors say. Beltrán-Sánchez died at St. Barnabas Hospital. Five other people between 14 and 71 years old were wounded.
Beltrán-Sánchez was seated on the train and stepped out the door when he heard a commotion and was hit by a stray bullet, NYPD Chief of Detectives Joseph Kenny said Thursday.
“He’s just a gentleman riding the train,” Kenny said. “He made the mistake of looking out onto the platform to see what was going on and he ends up getting killed.”
Video recovered by police shows Beltrán-Sánchez lying mortally wounded on the platform as people walk past him, Kenny said.
“It’s heartbreaking to see the video of him laying on the platform dying,” he said.
Jones was “seen along with another individual firing weapons at a third individual who fires back,” prosecutors said at his arraignment.
The 15-year-old remained at large Saturday. He and Jones, who are both members of D Block crew opened fire on the 14-year-old Burnside member as they sought payback for a Jan. 15 gang-related shooting the younger teen allegedly committed, police said.
D Block stands for Davidson Ave., Kenny said. The earlier shooting happened outside a Davidson Ave. bodega and the 14-year-old was among four others who opened fire on three men near the corner.
One of the victims, 17, was hit in the lower right leg and was taken to St. Barnabas Hospital for treatment. He was very uncooperative with police when questioned, cops said.
Kenny said that bullets collected on the train platform matched bullets recovered from the Davidson Ave. shooting, Kenny said.
The 14-year-old is currently facing charges for the Jan. 15 shooting, but hasn’t been charged with the train shooting. None of the guns used in the firefight were recovered, Kenny said.
The two crews may be responsible for five separate shootings or incidents of shots fired in and around Davidson Ave., police believe.
The long-standing beef between the two gangs is over “typical nonsense,” Kenny said.
“It’s over drill rapping and disrespect,” Kenny said. “The usual taunts.”
Beltrán-Sánchez planned to return to his home in Mexico next year. He is survived by his wife, two children ages 12 and 7, and his parents, said Mexican news outlet La Silla Rota.
With Rocco Parascandola
