NYPD arrests suspect on charges of murder, attempted murder in shooting near Bronx school

New York Police Department (NYPD) officials announced the arrest of Jeremiah Ryan on charges of murder, attempted murder and criminal possession of a weapon in connection with Friday’s shooting.

The shooting happened on East 156th Street near the South Bronx Educational Campus around 1:40 p.m., the NYPD said.

The teens were walking home from school when gunfire erupted, police said.

One of the victims was a 16-year-old girl, who was shot in her chest and died. The NYPD identified her on Saturday morning as Angellyh Yambo of E. 156th Street in the Bronx.

Another 16-year-old girl was shot in the leg and a 17-year-old boy was hit in the buttocks, police said. They were in stable condition at Lincoln Hospital.

Police are still working out the details but said two people were gesturing at each other across an intersection and then someone opened fire. The three victims were walking by along the sidewalk.

“We believe that they are coming from school, that they were headed home,” Deputy Police Chief Timothy McCormack told reporters at a brief news conference.

Six shell casings were recovered at the scene.

No arrests had been made in the case, police officials said. They said they have no description of a possible suspect.

A City Hall spokesman wrote on Twitter that Mayor Eric Adams was aware of the situation.

“Sadly, there was a triple shooting of three youth in the Bronx,” press secretary Fabien Levy tweeted.

“Details are still coming in, but @NYCMayor has been briefed with the available information.”

Adams later tweeted about the shooting.

“We lost a 16 year old baby in the Bronx today. We pray for this young girl, for her family, and for the other two victims in the hospital,” Adams tweeted.

“It’s a tragedy. It’s unacceptable. It’s why we can’t abandon our streets to gun violence.”

“We have two families that are completely destroyed right now — our victim’s family and our shooter’s family,” Deputy Police Chief Timothy McCormack said.

He described the suspect’s mother as “a hard-working woman” whose child had “zero police contact” before his arrest.

The shooting in the Bronx was the latest episode of headline-grabbing violence in the city amid a surge in crime during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Mayor Eric Adams has made fighting crime a priority since taking office Jan. 1. Homicides are down slightly from this time last year, but gun violence overall remains at levels not seen in a decade.

New York City saw shootings drop to modern-era lows from 2012 to 2019, but that progress was partly erased during the pandemic and social unrest of the past two years.

Violence still remains at levels far below the city’s nadir in the 1990s or even in the decade after the Sept. 11 terror attacks.