The boy had stopped at the Wanda Deli Grocery to purchase a ball before leaving the store on his bicycle.
UPDATE: Suspect William Ferrer, 45, has been arrested and charged with the murder of 12-year-old Jacob Freytes after the young boy was hit by a stray bullet in the Bronx over the weekend.
Authorities arrested Ferrer and charged him with murder, manslaughter, attempted murder, and a slew of other charges, according to New York City Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch.
https://twitter.com/NYPDPC/status/2081429094907224305?s=20
Tisch said of the arrest, "No arrest can ever ease the pain of this unimaginable loss, but the NYPD will continue to do everything in our power to seek justice for Jacob."
Ferrer has a rap sheet going back to 1999, with charges for possession of a forced instrument. He was arrested again in 2001 for alleged menacing and criminal contempt, per the New York Post.
Original story follows:
A 12-year-old boy who was the son of a police officer was fatally shot Saturday evening after stray gunfire erupted outside a Bronx bodega. The shooting occurred around 5:30 pm on Elliott Place near the Grand Concourse after a fight involving approximately six men broke out. Stray gunfire rang out, striking two other people and killing the 12–year-old child, who was an innocent bystander.
The boy had stopped at the Wanda Deli Grocery to purchase a ball before leaving the store on his bicycle. Surveillance footage showed the 12-year-old paying at the front counter and riding away moments before the shooting began. As gunfire erupted, the boy was seen running back into the bodega while clutching his shoulder as nearby customers ran for cover.
He collapsed on the floor near the front counter. He was pronounced dead after being transported to a nearby hospital. “He heard a commotion at the store. The bullet went straight into his chest. He fell off his bike,” an uncle told the New York Post.
The boy’s father, who was in Connecticut at the time of the shooting, was a police sergeant. Locals told the outlet he was a “good kid” who “loved to ride his bike.”
The boy’s uncle added that the boy “was saying hi to the guys up the block,” and “He showed respect. He was a good kid. He’s gonna be missed.”
“He lived on his own terms and he was only 12,” he said.
The circumstances around the shooting are still under investigation, and it is not clear who fired the shots and who was the intended target. The suspects fled in a black BMW.
Also struck were a 25-year-old man and a 34-year-old man. Both were taken to the hospital and are in stable condition.
Bronx Borough President Vanessa Gibson commented on the shooting, saying, “I am outraged, I’m heartbroken, I’m disgusted, just an unimaginable pain.”
“A 12-year-old lost his life, an innocent bystander, standing outside of a store with his bike…And now he’s gone and family and parents are devastating and living in unimaginable pain,” Gibson added.
Libby’s Desk
Commentary and must-reads from Libby’s desk, straight to your inbox.
TPM Newsletter
The Post Millennial’s top stories, delivered to your inbox.
