Jerome Burleigh, an 18-year-old teenager, was shot dead while fleeing a gang beating on a street in the Bronx (NYC).
Burleigh was leaving the Top Shelf Smoke Shop about a half mile from his home on Commonwealth Ave. near E. 172nd St., in the Soundview neighborhood, when a group of assailants attacked him around 5:30 p.m. Monday, he said. police.
The young man was punched and kicked, but managed to get free and ran. It was then that a gunman opened fire, hitting Burleigh once in the upper body.
The teen collapsed near a fire hydrant. “He was vomiting a lot of blood,” a witness told the Daily News. A 70-year-old woman who lived nearby rushed to comfort Burleigh as she lay dying, her daughter said. Both refused to give their names for fear of reprisals.
“He heard three shots,” the daughter said. “Everyone was going there to see what was happening, but (my mom) ran to check on her, because no one was coming near him.”
Paramedics quickly arrived and took Burleigh to Jacobi Medical Center, but were unable to save him. The gunman and his accomplices, all men, have fled and are being sought. It was not immediately disclosed what sparked the fight.
“[Estos tipos] they don’t respect each other,” said an area resident, who gave his name only as Tommy. “They are randomly killing people in the open… I never feel safe,” he added. “I’m always watching my back.”
No arrests have been made or suspects identified. Anyone with information should call 1-800-577-TIPS (8477) and in Spanish 1-888-57-PISTA (74782). Also through crimestoppers.nypdonline.org or by text to 274637 (CRIMES), followed by TIP577. All communications are strictly confidential.
Young people are increasingly protagonists in gun violence in New York as victims and perpetrators, particularly shootings and attacks with bladed weapons.
The pandemic, the anti-police climate and the penal reform have been identified as factors that have triggered crime in the city. In September an NYPD report found that recidivism among teens had risen sharply over the past five years and the number of gunmen and their underage victims had tripled.