Five people were reportedly shot in what police say was a gang-related shooting at a J’Ouvert celebration in Brooklyn, New York, early Monday morning, the New York Post reported.
Approximately 300 people reportedly assembled for the pre-dawn West Indian Day celebration, before the gunfire occurred around 3 a.m., the Post reported. Among those reportedly shot was six-year-old Maxwell Cesc-Vinho, police said.
“It looks like, it’s unfortunate, a gang-related shooting,” New York Police Department Chief of Detectives Rodney Harrison said, the Post reported. “This is a notorious gang area that, you know, we’ve had problems with in the past.”
5 shot, including 6-year-old boy near Brooklyn J’ouvert celebration https://t.co/OWvBKNchib pic.twitter.com/etDNUdDYDc
— Eyewitness News (@ABC7NY) September 7, 2020
Others who sustained injuries included Cesc-Vinho’s mother, Patricia Brathwaith, 47, Flavian Yves, 40, Bob Charlotin, 46, and Kelly Barthold, 34, police said, the Post reported. All injuries were non-life-threatening and everyone was taken to Kings County Hospital Center, police said.
Cesc-Vinho and Bratwaith were reportedly getting out of a cab when they were shot, according to the Post. It wasn’t apparent if any of the victims were targeted purposefully, Harrison said.
“It was really crazy — everyone was in shock,” a J’Ouvert participant, Joshua Kristal said, the Post reported. (RELATED: Federal Prosecutors Say Alleged Gang Member Went Right Back To Committing Gun Crimes After He Was Released Without Bail)
People barbecued and played music to celebrate despite official events being canceled due to the coronavirus pandemic, Harrison said.
“We actually promote that,” he said. “That doesn’t mean that people should come out and start shooting.”
Cesc-Vinho was surrounded by officers and bystanders as he was lying in blood on the sidewalk, video shows, the Post reported.
“The boy, his mom was carrying him. You could see there was blood in his pants,” Kristal said, the Post reported. “She dropped him, I didn’t know what to do, then I saw tons of blood.”
Two people with firearms were arrested at the scene, though it was unclear if either were involved in the incident, the Post reported. Shootings have reportedly occurred at previous J’Ouvert celebrations, and the NYPD expected people to gather along the traditional route despite the pandemic, the Post reported.
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