Police have upgraded charges against a 15-year-old boy for the bloody J’Ouvert shooting in Brooklyn that left five people, including a 6-year-old boy and his mother, wounded in a hail of gunfire, officials said Tuesday.
Cops on Tuesday charged the teen with attempted murder, felony assault and weapon possession for the 2:54 a.m. shooting near the corner of Nostrand Ave. and Crown St. in Crown Heights on Monday. The teen’s name is not being released because of his age.
He was initially only charged with weapon possession.
The 6-year-old boy was shot in both legs, his mother, Patricia Brathwaite, told reporters Monday night. A bullet shattered his femur, requiring surgery.
Due to coronavirus, J’Ouvert was officially canceled this year, along with the New York Caribbean Carnival Parade that traditionally follows it — but some revelers still took to the streets.
Responding police nabbed the teen and 21-year-old Noel Kervins at the scene. Kervins was charged with weapon possession and on Tuesday ordered held on $25,000 bail.
“The officer began running northbound toward the shooting scene and observed (Kervins) walking southbound. He had both hands in front of his body, using his hands to wrap an object in a red silk flag,” Brooklyn Assistant District Attorney Wilfredo Cotto explained during Tuesday’s arraignment. “The officer observed the object appeared to be a firearm and turned toward the defendant and he began running towards the shooting scene. The defendant is subsequently apprehended and the firearm was recovered in the red silk flag.”
“The firearm was a .380 caliber pistol, fully loaded with one round in chamber and seven in the magazine. There was no evidence of recent discharge,” the prosecutor said.
Kervins has denied taking part in the shooting, his attorney Adam Cole said.
“He denies the allegation and it does not appear he’s in any way connected to the shooting,” Cole said.
It was not immediately clear if the 15-year-old boy will be charged as an adult or arraigned in juvenile court.
(Source: Daily News)