FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Tuesday, February 13, 2018
Gang Member Sentenced to 15 Years in Prison for Shooting
Teenager during Incident where Another Teen was Killed
Outside of Applebee’s in Downtown Brooklyn
Shots Fired as Two Rival Gangs Confronted Each Other on Busy Flatbush Avenue
Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez today announced that a gang member was sentenced to 15 years in prison following his convictions of first-degree manslaughter and other charges in connection with a 2015 shooting in which he shot an 18-year-old, leading to the subsequent death of 16-year-old Armani Hankins.
District Attorney Gonzalez said, “I am committed to keeping the people of Brooklyn safe and will not tolerate gun battles in our streets like the one that took place in this case. This defendant opened fire in a bustling neighborhood, not far from a hospital and a college campus, wounding a young man. With today’s sentence, he has been held responsible for his brazen and lawless actions.”
The District Attorney identified the defendant as Tyshawn Simon-Roberson, 18, of Downtown Brooklyn. He was sentenced today by Brooklyn Supreme Court Justice Vincent Del Giudice following his conviction last month of first-degree manslaughter, first-degree attempted assault and second-degree criminal possession of a weapon after a jury trial. A co-defendant, Malik Peters, 19, was convicted of the same charges by a different jury and is scheduled to be sentenced on February 27, 2018.
According to trial testimony, on October 26, 2015, at approximately 6 p.m., members of two rival gangs, the East New York-based “4 to 5” and the Fort Greene-based “900” met up in the vicinity of 395 Flatbush Avenue Extension, in front of an Applebee’s restaurant, and confronted each other. Simon-Roberson pulled out a firearm and fired twice, striking an 18-year-old in the leg. When “4 to 5” associates, which included Armani Hankins, ran in pursuit of the fleeing “900” members after the teen was shot in the leg, Peters pulled out a gun and shot and killed “4 to 5” gang member Hankins.
The case was investigated by Detective Anthony Barbee of the NYPD’s 88th Precinct Detective Squad. The case was additionally investigated by Detective Investigator Kolawole Olosunde, under the supervision of Supervising Detective Investigator David Acres, Deputy Chief Edwin Murphy and Interim Chief Joseph Piraino, of the District Attorney’s Investigations Bureau.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant District Attorney Patrick O’Connor, Deputy Chief of the District Attorney’s Violent Criminal Enterprises Bureau, and Senior Assistant District Attorney Viviane Dussek, also of VCE, under the supervision of Assistant District Attorney Nicole Chavis, VCE Chief, and the overall supervision of Assistant District Attorney Patricia McNeill, Deputy Chief of the Investigations Division.
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