One dead, three hurt in Poughkeepsie violence

Three people were shot, one fatally, and a teen was stabbed in a pair of incidents Saturday in Poughkeepsie.

A 16-year-old boy was fatally shot and another 16-yearold was wounded in a stabbing in the city Saturday night, about 19 hours after an earlier shooting left two women wounded, city police said.

At 10:33 p.m. Saturday, city police received a report of shots fired in the area of North Bridge and Charles streets. Five minutes later, they received a report of a person stabbed in the same area.

The shooting victim was taken to MidHudson Regional Hospital in Poughkeepsie, where he was later pronounced dead. The stabbing victim was taken to Vassar Brothers Medical Center in Poughkeepsie with a serious, but non-lifethreatening, stab wound to his back.

The stabbing victim told police the two were walking in the area when he felt himself getting stabbed in the back. He said he began running and heard several gunshots. He said he ran up to a house, then returned and found his friend wounded.

He could not identify who stabbed him or shot his friend, police said.

In the earlier incident, police said, two women leaving a gathering at 194 Cottage St. early Saturday when they were wounded by gunfire. Detective Lieutenant Matt Clark said police responded to Vassar Brothers Medical Center at 3:26 a.m. following a report that two gunshot victims had arrived at the hospital’s emergency room.

Clark said the two women, both 26, said they were leaving the gathering in their car when they heard what they thought were firecrackers. The driver then realized she had been shot through her right hand and the passenger suffered an injury to her lip. Neither victim could give any information on who shot them or why.

Police Chief Tom Pape called the shooting “very unfortunate” and said detectives will have difficulty with the investigation because the victims drove themselves to the hospital, which he said interfered with the crime scene. Pape also said there were few witnesses.

Pape called the shooting and stabbing of the two teenagers “horrific” and said every available detective has been called in to assist in the investigation, including members of the Dutchess County Drug Task Force and the Safe Streets Task Force.

“This is an all-hands-ondeck investigation,” he said. “Our detectives have been working on the case since it happened and they will continue to do so until every lead has been exhausted.”

Anyone with information on the Cottage Street shooting or the shooting and stabbing near North Bridge and Charles Streets is asked to call the City of Poughkeepsie Police at (845) 451-7577. Non-emergency crime-related tips can be anonymously entered at the City of Poughkeepsie Police online tips website.