Parents making their routine trip to pick up their kids from school in Kingsbridge Heights were horrified recently to learn that a 16-year-old male youth had been stabbed. Police said the teen remains in critical condition as police search for the suspect who reportedly plunged a knife into the victim.

 

According to an NYPD official, the incident was reported at 2:30 p.m. on Tuesday, Jan. 31, on Jerome Avenue, between West 195th Street and West Kingsbridge Road on the border of Kingsbridge Heights and Fordham Manor.

 

The NYPD official told Norwood News, “A 16-year-old male was stabbed in the stomach and taken to Jacobi Hospital.” The official added that the victim was removed from the scene in critical condition and that police were looking for five people who fled south on Jerome Avenue after the stabbing.

 

According to police radio communications, officers from several nearby precincts could be heard coordinating in order to close off several streets along the route to Jacobi Hospital to assist the ambulance get there quicker.

 

After the stabbing, Citizens’ App user, “bcyde,” posted a message, writing, “Very sad. Literally saw the paramedics and cops racing the kid to (the) ambulance while trying to resuscitate him. Hope he makes it.”

 

Another user of the social media crimefighting app, “bxbillster,” wrote that he had seen the victim’s bleeding wounds. “I was just picking (up) my kid from school and when I got out, I went to see what happened… It’s crazy; these little kids doing this kind of stuff.”

 

Another Citizens’ App user, “TheBronxUser570119007,” alleged to have witnessed the incident and disputed the NYPD’s version of five suspects, writing, “The five males were his friends. It was two people who did the crime.”

 

The same social media user added, “I saw it all with my eyes. It all happened because some guy was going down from the train station and then the guy pushed the kid and pulled a knife out, and the kid ran but got stabbed twice. I hope the kid makes it.”

 

The incident took place as most students were either leaving school or about to leave school for the day. The site of the incident is located about one block south of P.S. 340 on West 195th Street, one-and-a-half blocks from P.S. 86-X, located at 2751 Reservoir Avenue, and two-and-a-half blocks from Walton High School and the International School for Liberal Arts, located at 2791 Reservoir Avenue.

 

A resident of Bronx Community District 7 later told Norwood News he had heard the student attended Walton High School. Norwood News reached out to NYC Department of Education (DOE) for comment. As of press date, we had not received an immediate response.

 

The incident comes less than two weeks after a 13-year-old student at a middle school in Fordham Heights was arrested after he was allegedly found to be in possession of a loaded gun.

 

As reported, an NYPD spokesperson said that on Thursday, Jan. 19, at around 9.20 a.m., police were alerted that there was a gun found inside M.S. 363 (previously M.S. 399) Academy for Personal Leadership and Excellence, located at 120 East 184th Street in Fordham Heights.

 

“Upon arrival, school safety agents stated that a 13-year-old male student was in possession of a loaded .22 revolver, an imitation firearm, ammunition, and a boxcutter in his backpack,” the spokesperson said.

 

The teen was taken into custody by a school safety agent and later taken to the 46th Precinct, police said, adding that no injuries were reported as a result of the incident. They added that the school does not have a scanning system (metal detector) in place. The unnamed student was charged with criminal possession of a weapon and unlawful possession of a weapon.

 

On the same day, Jan. 19, as also reported, two teens were shot outside Longwood Police Athletic League, located at 998 Longwood Avenue. Police said one of the two teens, Josue Fenton, 15, of the Laconia section of the Bronx later succumbed to his injuries. The 15-year-old’s organs were later donated, saving seven people from serious long-term illnesses.

 

As reported, the NYPD recently reported that for the month of January 2023, the number of overall shooting incidents and murders in New York City has declined, compared to January 2022, a drop they attribute to what was called the department’s “enhanced public safety investment” across each borough, in every neighborhood.

Meanwhile, they said citywide shooting incidents had decreased in January by 26.3 percent (73 v. 99) which officials said was driven by steep reductions in such incidents in The Bronx, Brooklyn, and Manhattan.

 

Police Commissioner Keechant L. Sewell said of the latest statistics, “As we step forward through 2023 and beyond, the women and men of the New York City Police Department are continuing to effectively and efficiently suppress violence, address the drivers of crime, and safeguard our streets and our subways.”

 

She added, “More work, however, is required when it comes to certain categories of crime, and we are determined in our efforts to reverse these trends. Everyone who lives, works, and visits our great city deserves to be safe, and the members of the NYPD will tolerate nothing less. Our Strategic Plan, announced last month, is focused on innovation, flexibility, and exceeding expectations – and our mission remains concentrated on the safety and security of all the people we serve.”

 

Norwood News will continue to follow this developing story.

 

*Síle Moloney contributed to this story.