A teenager was shot and killed in a suspected gang-related shooting Thursday evening at a Queens park where he often played basketball — while the shooter remains bedridden, according to authorities and sources.
Cops discovered the 15-year-old boy lying with a gunshot wound to his torso near Nautilus Playground at Roy Wilkins Park in St. Albans just before 6:20 p.m. after responding to a 911 call, according to NYPD and law enforcement sources.
The teen, who has not yet been identified, was taken to Jamaica Hospital where he died, police said.
It appears that the victim was the intended target of a gang shooting, according to sources.
The authorities stormed the park, which was full of young people on that unusually warm evening, as witnesses described hearing the sound of gunfire and then seeing the victim lying on the ground.
“I was playing basketball at the park, and you know these tough little kids always want to come here, fight, do stupid things. I came here, I heard a gunshot, and I came running here to make sure everyone was okay, especially my friends,” AJ, a frequent visitor to the park, told The Post.
“And I see a dead kid, and I know him when he came here to play basketball. He’s a good basketball player. Great kid.”
He added: “You stupid man. Get off the streets. Just play basketball,” noting that seeing the dead boy was “shocking.”
Tony, who was exiting the park’s leisure centre, thought the large police presence was just a drill, before realizing the horror.
“It’s unusual here. It’s unusual for this area. Younger people and younger people are getting guns now,” he said.
“I think it’s crazy, man, that these kids can’t come to the playground and play. I think it’s ridiculous. Kids should be able to come to the playground and play. There’s nowhere else to play.”
Police said no arrests have been made and the investigation is ongoing.