ABC News(NEW YORK) — Three months after gunfire shattered a neighborhood block party, killing one person and injuring 11 in the Brownsville section of Brooklyn, New York, police say they have a suspect in custody.
Brooklyn resident Kyle Williams, 20, was charged Wednesday with murder, attempted murder, criminal possession of a weapon and reckless endangerment in connection with the shooting, which took place during the neighborhood’s annual Old Timers Day event at Brownsville Playground on July 27.
The incident, which police at the time said may have been gang related, left the neighborhood badly shaken. The shots may have been an exchange of gunfire between two or more suspects, authorities said.
“One of the worst experiences of my life,” tweeted New York City Council Member Alicka Samuel, who co-sponsored the event with Council Member Inez Barron and was there when the shooting took place. “How does such a beautiful and peaceful event become overshadowed by tragedy in seconds? We have to do more.”
Jason Pagan, 38, was struck by gunfire in the head and pronounced dead at a local hospital, according to the New York Police Department. Eleven other people — six men and five women — were shot and transported to the hospital for treatment, one in critical condition. The victims ranged in age from 25 to 55 years old, police said.
The shooting took place just before 11 p.m., as the crowd of about 2,000 was winding down the festivities.
The Old Timers event, which dates back to 1963, is a week-long festival that includes food booths, musical performances, and a fashion and talent show.
Although regarded as one of Brooklyn’s more dangerous neighborhoods, Brownsville had hosted the annual event for 55 years without incident.
Mayor Bill de Blasio, in a news conference on the day after the shooting, called the event “an example of everything good about Brownsville.”
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