On Tuesday, October 27th, 2020, at approximately 9:35 PM, members of the Yonkers Police Department responded to the Triangle Deli at 286 Ashburton Avenue on a report of a person shot inside the store. Upon arrival officers located an unresponsive male victim down inside the store with an apparent gunshot wound to the chest. First Responders rendered emergency medical aid to the victim; he was transported to a local area hospital where he subsequently died from his injuries. Officers cordoned-off the area and initiated a criminal investigation.
Detectives from the Major Case Squad and Crime Scene Unit responded to the scene, interviewing subjects and witnesses, recovering surveillance video, and processing forensic and ballistic evidence. Investigation yielded that the victim was exiting the deli when he was approached by two suspects outside; one of the suspects produced a handgun and fired one time in the direction of the victim, striking him the chest. The victim collapsed at scene and the two suspects fled the area. Within days investigators developed information as to the identity of the alleged shooter; additionally, evidence was submitted for processing including an article of clothing believed to have been discarded by the suspect – that article of clothing yielded a DNA profile. Over the next several months Detectives worked continuously to enhance the investigation, follow-up leads, and make investigative progress, including matching the DNA profile to the same alleged shooter, identified as a 15-year-old (at the time of the incident) resident of the City of Dover, Delaware with familial ties to the City of Yonkers. Investigators believe that the suspect was visiting the City of Yonkers and may have had associations with local street gangs including the 300 Bloodhound Brims, and that the shooting was the result of an earlier dispute between the victim and those same groups.
Prosecutors with the Westchester County District Attorney’s Office presented evidence to the Grand Jury; the suspect was indicted, and a county arrest warrant was issued. Last week, the suspect was apprehended by members of the United States Marshals Service in the City of Dover and brought back to the City of Yonkers. On August 9th the suspect was booked by the Yonkers Police on the criminal charge of Murder 2, a Class A-I Violent Felony in the New York State Penal; he is classified as a juvenile offender, as such no identifying information will be released. On August 10th he was arraigned in the Youth Part of Superior Court and remanded to a juvenile detention facility pending his next court date. The case is being prosecuted by the Westchester County District Attorney’s Office. Additional information may be released as it becomes available.
The victim is identified as Javon Merrill, a 27-year-old resident of this City. The City of Yonkers and Yonkers Police Department offers its sincere condolences to his family and friends.
