Suspect charged with murder after 1 killed, 3 other men shot in Bronx

A 51-year-old man was arrested and charged after one man was killed and three others were shot and wounded outside a Popeyes in the Bronx.

Salvatore Rivera was charged with murder, manslaughter, assault and criminal possession of a weapon after being taken into custody on Friday.

The shooting was reported just after 2:30 p.m. at the intersection of East Tremont and Hughes avenues.

Police say it was an argument just outside the Popeyes that sparked the violence.

Surveillance video captured a man pulling out a handgun and opening fire. Seconds later another man appears from around the building and fires shots as well, sending people running.

“I’m walking down the street and I hear the gunshots,” resident Michael Felton said. “I’m so tired, so sad to hear all these gunshots. Every day.”

When police arrived they found a 24-year-old man, identified as Jeremiah Smith, suffering from a gunshot wound to his torso. He was taken to St. Barnabas Hospital where he pronounced dead.

Three other men at the location were also shot.

One was shot in the torso and listed in critical condition, while two others, a 58-year-old man and a 36-year-old man, were said to be stable — one was shot in the ankle and another was shot in the buttocks.

Abdur Rahim Shabbir just started working at the Popeyes two weeks ago. He is shaken.

“I’m feeling scared. This is a new country. I’ve been here only 5 months,” Rahim said. “I don’t even see this kind of crime when I’m in my country. So, this is a new experience. I want to go home right now.”

It is not yet clear if police are searching for any other suspects.

Shootings are down in New York City so far this year, according to data from the NYPD.

As of Feb. 5, there were 97 shooting victims, which is down 23.6% from this time last year and there have been 83 shooting incidents, which is down 27.2% from this time last year.

So far in 2023 there have been 64 mass shootings as of February 10, including this latest one in The Bronx.

The Gun Violence Archive, which defines a mass shooting as one with four or more people injured or killed, not including the perpetrator, counted, 647 mass shootings in 2022, 691 in 2021, 611 in 2020, and 417 in 2019.

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