A 25-year-old Long Island man is charged with manslaughter after allegedly shooting a backyard intruder in the back after the intruder's accomplice tried to break into his house.
Youssef Abdelgawad pleaded not guilty Monday in the shooting death of Jazzmen Bryant last August. He is also charged with criminally negligent homicide.
Prosecutors say the victim and several others were hiding behind a metal shed in the backyard of the home where Abdelgawad lives with his brother and parents, as an accomplice of the group approached a sliding door at the rear of the house.
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Abdelgawad's brother got into a confrontation with the man who approached the house, who was armed with a pellet gun, according to prosecutors.
As the intruders started to flee, Abdelgawad chased them and fired a shotgun, hitting Bryant in the back. Bryant was killed.
Abdelgawad's defense attorney said surveillance video shows the man who approached the house fired a gun into the house, but prosecutors say there is no evidence of that.
The defense attorney, Matt Tuohy, said flashes can be seen on the video.
"It's self-defense," said Tuohy. "The video shows my client coming outside of the house to defend himself and his brothers."
