Man collared in shooting death of boy, 16, at deli in the Bronx

Cops have arrested the man they say gunned down a 16-yearold boy outside a Bronx deli in a violent clash caught on video, officials announced Tuesday.

Marquis Beckford, 22, was grabbed by police at about 6 p.m. Monday as cops responded to a report of a purse snatching on Trinity Ave. in Melrose.

As they investigated the purse snatching, cops spotted and grabbed Beckford, who police had already identified as the gunman in the Dec. 23 shooting of James Solano outside the King Deli on Boston Road near E. 166th St. in Morrisania.

Beckford had a firearm on him when cops took him into custody, sources with knowledge of the case said.

Cops did not immediately disclose why Beckford targeted the teen.

James was just three blocks from home when he was shot, cops said. He died at Lincoln Hospital.

Security video shows the moment when the shooter, hiding under a surgical mask and a baseball cap with a hoodie, fired at the teen.

Cops said the two stood together briefly before Beckford tapped James on the shoulder, stepped back, pulled a semiautomatic handgun and fired the killing round.

Wounded and dripping blood, James ran to the sidewalk, bent down, turned around and then went into the store, where he collapsed.

A lone shell casing was found at the scene. The victim’s blood covered the ATM in the deli’s entrance, and was spattered on the ground outside.

“I saw a kid in the street. He was laid out flat,” witness Luis Hernandez, 24, told the Daily News. “I have no words. It was so sad.”

Detectives charged Beckford with murder, manslaughter and weapons possession. His arraignment in Bronx Criminal Court was pending.

He has been arrested about 10 times stretching back to 2017, although most of his arrests were for burglary and domestic violence assaults, authorities said.