Thirty alleged gang members who authorities say are responsible for half of this year’s shootings in Inwood and Washington Heights this year were indicted Thursday on a range of charges — including murder, attempted murder, weapons possession and conspiracy to commit violence.
The busts come after shootings surged during the pandemic. Even though shootings have since come down, so far this year there have been about 100 more shootings citywide than during the same period in 2019, according to NYPD data.
Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg said the charges unveiled on Thursday all stemmed from a yearslong rivalry.
“The violence did not impact just these defendants and their associates,” Bragg said at a news conference detailing the indictment. “It impacted the entire neighborhood, [creating] a climate of fear among ordinary residents who had no part in this violence.”
Bragg said all of the shootings addressed in the charges were sparked by an alleged gang killing in 2018. The incident sparked 18 retaliatory shootings that claimed seven lives, including innocent bystanders, Bragg said.
Bragg blamed the gang war for approximately 50% of all this year’s shootings in the 33rd and 34th precincts, which include much of Washington Heights and Inwood in Uptown Manhattan.
Mayor Eric Adams frequently points to the removal of illegal guns as one of his major successes. According to NYPD data, gun seizures peaked in 2022, with 7,145 guns taken compared to 5,400 in 2019. That number has come down this year, to roughly 5,500 guns seized so far in 2024, according to law enforcement officials.
NYPD Deputy Chief Brian Gill, commander of northern Manhattan detectives, credits fast response by patrol officers in identifying targets.
“These kids are so young,” Gill said. “Sometimes something on social media will spark violence out of nowhere. Someone will be livestreaming and then his oppositions [sic] will see it and they’ll run outside and confront them with weapons.”
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