NEW YORK (1010 WINS) — A 17-year-old boy was shot multiple times near his Upper West Side high school Tuesday morning, which police now believe may be linked to at least two other shootings in Manhattan.
The three incidents on Tuesday happened within a few hours of each other and near schools.
Investigators are "proceeding" as if "they are all connected," according to NYPD Chief of Patrol John Chell, because of their "proximity, geography," closeness to schools and the victims' ages.
Police said the first shooting happened after the victim got into an argument with four to five young men when one of them, a 19-year-old, opened fire at 68th Street and Amsterdam Avenue around 9:50 a.m.
The gunman fired three shots, striking the 17-year-old boy twice in the stomach. According to police, the wounded boy then ran to his school, Martin Luther King High School.
He was taken to New York-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell Medical Center in stable condition.
The shooter then got into a cab and tried to flee the scene, but police caught up with him a short time later. He was arrested, and the gun has been recovered.
Both LaGuardia High School and MLK High School were locked down for a short time as a result of the shooting.
Police said the 19-year-old suspect has three prior arrests, including two for narcotics sales in 2023. Police said he was out on bail in a 2021 armed robbery case.
Then around 1 p.m., police said a 16-year-old boy and a 27-year-old man were shot in the legs near Harlem Renaissance High School at 128th Street and Madison Avenue.
Police said the teen was the intended target, while the other victim was not.
Both were transported in stable condition to NYC Health + Hospitals/Harlem.
Chell said the NYPD confirmed that the second shooting was gang-motivated.
Another shooting was reported Tuesday afternoon on 105th Street and Park Avenue in East Harlem, but no one was struck.
The 19-year-old suspect in the first shooting has not yet been identified, nor have any of the victims.
Police have activated a Level 2 mobilization that will last through Wednesday morning's start of classes and through school dismissal.
Police are still looking for other suspects in the first shooting, as well as three in the second. Anyone with information is asked to call the NYPD's Crime Stoppers Hotline at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477).
Investigations are still ongoing.
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