NYC SHOOTINGS: Five shot overnight as communities band together to stop violence

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By Todd Maisel

Five people were shot overnight in the Bronx, Manhattan, and Queens with citywide violence continuing unabated.

The latest shootings follow Wednesday afternoon’s gang violence in Flatbush in which a teenager was killed and another man was wounded in a broad-daylight attack.

The slain teenager was identified this morning as Malcomb Amede of Lefferts Avenue. He and a 31-year-old man were shot yesterday afternoon at Woodruff Avenue and Ocean Avenue in Flatbush – an area that has seen three homicides and at least six people shot over the past month.

A gun found on at the scene may have belonged to one of the victims in the shooting possibly to defend themselves from the assailant who escaped in a silver BMW X-5 who’s license plate appears to have been removed prior to the shooting.

The shootings come as residents around the city have been banding together in an effort to stop the violence and convince warring gangs to stop shooting at each other – a large number of these shootings linked to a war between the Crips and the Bloods – still associated with the murder of rapper Pop Smoke in February and the arrest of five rival gang members.

A peace rally will be held later today in Asser Levy Park in Brighton Beach where organizers are calling for peace. Another rally is planned for Aug. 21, 11:45 a.m. in the Bronx at Broadway and West 242nd Street.

Residents of Ravenswood Houses, in Astoria Queens, call for peace in their community after four people were shot in the courtyard of the development Tuesday evening. (Photo by Todd Maisel)

Meanwhile, police have been stepping up patrols in the high crime areas and have made numerous arrests for guns and shootings.

Here’s a rundown of the latest overnight shootings:

Aug. 19, 7:47 pm – A 61-year-old woman was shot in the leg after getting caught in the cross-fire between two warring factions in front of 765 East 163rd Street at Tinton Avenue in the Forest Houses, a NYCHA development in the Bronx.

Police from the 42nd Precinct said numerous shots were fired from two directions, hitting the unsuspecting woman. She was taken to Lincoln Hospital in stable condition.

Police nabbed one man in the shooting and charges were pending. Also, a firearm was recovered at the scene, police say.

Aug. 19, 9:54 p.m – A 35-year-old man was shot in the left leg at East 126th Street and Lexington Avenue in Harlem. Police from the 25th Precinct said the victim told him that a black vehicle drove by and shot him for no apparent reason.

The victim was taken to Harlem Hospital in stable condition. There was no motive given for this shooting.

Aug. 19, 11 p.m. – Two people were shot in a dispute at 146th Street an Archer Avenue in Jamaica, Queens. Police from the 103rd Precinct said a 26-year-old man was found suffering a gunshot wound to the right side of his chest. He was rushed to Jamaica Hospital in serious condition.

A second male, 17, walked into Franklin General Hospital in Long Island with a wound to the stomach but was then transferred to Jamaica Hospital in stable condition.

Police from the 103rd Precinct were holding two persons of interest in custody in connection with this shooting, charges were pending.

Aug. 20, 6:13 a.m. – A 31-year-old male was shot in the stomach at West 143rd Street and Hamilton Place in Manhattan. Police from the 30th Precinct say the victim was taken to Harlem Hospital where he was said by police to be “highly uncooperative.

There were also reports of shots fired in various parts of the city, including Brooklyn, Bronx and Manhattan, but no reported injuries from those incidents thus far.

Police from the 32nd Precinct have also released the name of a man shot to death in Manhattan early yesterday morning. Irvin Payne, 30, of East 169th Street in the Bronx, was shot in the face at about 3:10 a.m. in front of 620 Lenox Avenue in Manhattan. He later died at Harlem Hospital.

Anyone with information in regard to the identity of the male is asked to call the NYPD’s Crime Stoppers Hotline at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477) or for Spanish, 1-888-57-PISTA (74782). The public can also submit their tips by logging onto the CrimeStoppers website at WWW.NYPDCRIMESTOPPERS.COM, or on Twitter @ NYPDTips. All calls are strictly confidential.