What to Know
- A reputed teen gang member was charged with murder and other crimes for firing a stray bullet that hit a 54-year-old man walking his dog in broad daylight last month, according to Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz.
- Despite at least one surgery and fighting for his life for 31 days, George Rosa died Tuesday as a result of the gunshot wound he sustained while walking his dog July 25.
- The teen defendant was arrested on Tuesday following another shooting, according to the district attorney. No one is believed to have been injured in that shooting.
A reputed teen gang member was charged with murder and other crimes for firing a stray bullet that hit a 54-year-old man walking his dog in broad daylight last month, according to Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz.
The 17-year-old, whose name is being withheld because of his age, is accused of firing the shot during an ongoing dispute with rival gang members in the vicinity of the Queensbridge Houses.
The teen was arraigned Wednesday night on a complaint charging him with murder in the second degree, criminal possession of a weapon in the second degree and reckless endangerment in the first degree. The defendant was remanded and their court return date was set for Thursday. If convicted, the defendant faces up to 25 years to life in prison.
Katz said that at about 11:20 a.m. on July 25, George Rosa was out walking his dog in his Long Island City neighborhood, near the intersection of 22st Street and 40th Avenue, when he heard a popping sound and realized that he was bleeding from his stomach.
The 54-year-old man had been shot once in the abdomen. He was rushed to a nearby hospital. Despite at least one surgery and fighting for his life for 31 days, Rosa died Tuesday from the gunshot wound.
According to the charges, the defendant and an accomplice, who has not yet been arrested, were trying to shoot an intended target, but missed and the stray bullet struck Rosa instead, the district attorney's office said.
News
The teen defendant was arrested on Tuesday following another shooting, according to the district attorney, and is accused, along with the same accomplice, of firing a gun near 40th Avenue and 10th Street, in Long Island City. No one is believed to have been injured in that shooting.
“Tragically, a man is dead because he took his dog for a walk in his neighborhood, struck by a bullet intended for someone else," Katz said. "Every resident of every community deserves to be safe from the reckless gang violence that is fueled by access to guns.”
