Migrant teen indicted on attempted murder raps in Times Sq. shooting spree
A 15-year-old has been indicted for the attempted murders of a NYPD officer and a Brazilian tourist in a shoplifting gone wrong near Times Square, authorities said Monday.
He was stealing from the JD Sports store on Broadway and 41st St. the night of Feb. 8 when a loss prevention officer confronted him, police said at the time.
The teen pulled out a gun and fired inside the store, missing the employee but striking a 38-year-old tourist, according to authorities.
The teen, whose name is being withheld due to his age, took off, allegedly shooting at a cop trying to place him under arrest.
The officer did not return fire and law enforcement nabbed the suspect 24 hours later in Yonkers, where he was seen crying as he was taken into custody.
“This shooting occurred in the middle of a crowded Times Square teeming with New Yorkers and tourists,” Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg said in a Monday statement. “This defendant is charged with allegedly recklessly firing his weapon inside of a store — striking a tourist — and then turning the gun on a police officer who was courageously attempting to place him under arrest.
“We will continue to work closely with our law enforcement partners to ensure full accountability for gun violence.”
A grand jury indicted the teen on two second-degree counts of attempted murder, as well as assault and weapons charges. He will be charged as a juvenile, according to a spokesperson for Bragg’s office. Cops previously said the teen would be charged as an adult.
Authorities described the suspect as a Venezuelan migrant who came to the U.S. in September.
After the shooting, he dashed to his home at an Upper West Side migrant shelter, then headed out of town with his mother, according to prosecutors.
The teen is being held in custody at a secure city Administration for Children’s Services facility, Bragg’s office said.