The 15-year-old boy who opened fire on police officers and pedestrians in Times Square last Friday will be tried as an adult. The decision was announced after the young man was arrested this Saturday.
"The teen, who did not enter a plea, was charged as an adult, but will be sent to a juvenile facility because of his age, officials said,” explained the New York Post, which also reported that the prosecutor's office warned that he will likely try to flee again.
"Based on all of this, it’s clear that he is facing a significant sentence of incarceration on this serious case and can not be trusted to return to court,” prosecutors added in statements reported by the Post.
The minor, a 15-year-old Venezuelan boy, tried to rob a a Times Square store with two other accomplices. He opened fire while trying to flee the scene and a Brazilian tourist was wounded after being shot. Officers and security guards were not able to catch the shooter who managed to escape after running into a subway station.
Jesús Alejandro Rivas-Figueroa, an illegal immigrant, was detained at the home of a relative. His mother was present and cried while he was arrested. During the arrest, the teenager also burst into tears. He looked frightened as he was surrounded by the police officers in bulletproof vests.
One under 💙🖤💪🏽💪🏽#NYPD #BackTheBlue #illegalimmigrants #Police #lawenforcement #NYC pic.twitter.com/0BTfMBTUwt
— Angel L Maysonet🇵🇷🇺🇸👮🏻♂️💙🖤 (@bigricanman) February 9, 2024
