Boy, 15, indicted for attempted murder in Central Islip pool shooting

A 15-year-old Amityville boy was indicted on second-degree attempted murder charges for allegedly opening fire at a Central Islip apartment complex swimming pool in June, striking two victims with multiple gunshots.

Suffolk County District Attorney Raymond Tierney announced that the teenager faces six charges, including second-degree attempted murder, for the June 19 shooting at the Hawthorne Living apartment complex that left seven bullet wounds in his alleged intended target and injured an adult female bystander.

Authorities have not released the name of the defendant due to his age.

“This violence has no place in our community,” Tierney said in a statement. “My office will do everything in its power to seek swift justice for the victims.”

The shooting

Prosecutors said the violence erupted about 4:30 p.m., when two groups of teenagers engaged in a physical altercation at the apartment complex pool. Moments after the fight began, the defendant allegedly retrieved a firearm from his backpack and pulled the trigger at least 10 times.

Seven shots struck the juvenile victim, who authorities said was the intended target. An adult female who was visiting the pool with the victim was also wounded in the gunfire.

The teenage gunman fled the scene immediately after the shooting, Tierney said. Suffolk County Police recovered 10 spent shell casings and multiple stray bullet fragments from the scene.

One bullet fragment penetrated a nearby apartment, though no additional victims or injuries were reported.

Arrest and charges

The defendant remained at large for nearly two months before his capture. On Aug. 14, Suffolk cops, working with the U.S. Marshal Service’s New York/New Jersey Regional Fugitive Task Force and the the Suffolk district attorney’s Gang Task Force, nabbed the teen in Amityville.

On Sept. 2, the defendant was arraigned before Acting Supreme Court Justice Karen Kerr on a six-count indictment:

• One count of second-degree attempted murder
• One count of first-degree assault
• Two counts of second-degree criminal possession of a weapon
• One count of second-degree assault
• One count of first-degree reckless endangerment

The judge set bail at $500,000 cash, $1 million bond, or $2.5 million partially secured bond. The defendant faces 3⅓ to 10 years in prison if convicted on the top charge.

_{Top photo: The pool at Hawthorne Living complex in Central Islip, where the June shooting incident took place (Facebook).}