In a tragic case of mistaken identity, Lesandro “Junior” Guzman-Feliz, a New York teen, was slashed to death by a gang members wielding a machete last June.
Assistant District Attorney Morgan Dolan on May 6 revealed the finals moments of Guzman-Feliz during the first-degree murder trial for the five men who allegedly attacked the teen, reported Crime Online.
Dolan described the 15-year-old as “alone, unarmed, defenseless and outmanned.”
The murder suspects reportedly belonged to the Sures group of the Trinitarios gang and attacked Guzman-Feliz because they believed him to be a rival member of the Sunset crew. The attack was recorded by a witness and nearby surveillance cameras.
Police said the teen was not involved in any gang and even participated in NYPD’s Explorers program, which helps “teens and young adults learn about law enforcement and careers in the field,” according to the program’s website.
Trial begins for 2018 machete murder of Bronx teen ‘Junior’ Guzman-Feliz
The senseless killing shocked the city when video emerged showing the teen being hauled out of a bodega and murdered by alleged gang members.https://t.co/O2wpJydAZV
— New York Daily News (@NYDailyNews) May 6, 2019
“By the time we got downstairs, he was already in front of the hospital, collapsed,” said Tamika Jones, a witness who testified on Monday.
“One of my friends took off her shirt and put it against his neck to try and stop the bleeding. He had blood all over his body. He was trying to stay alive, holding his wound himself,” she said.
A day after the opening statements, prosecutors played the video of the teen being brutally killed, while his mother, Leandra Feliz left the courtroom in tears.
“Was so frustrating, haven’t digested it yet,” she said according to ABC7. “I’m still too kind of out of mind … I had to close my eyes, look away, it was torture.”
Guzman-Feliz Honored With Street Sign
A New York City intersection has been renamed for the Bronx teenager.
The intersection of Bathgate Avenue and East 183rd Street will now be called “Lesandro Junior Guzman-Feliz Way.” City Councilman Ritchie Torres was joined by Guzman-Feliz’s family and members of the New York Police Department Explorer program for the dedication on Feb. 27.
Thousands Came Together
Thousands of mourners said farewell to the teenager, whose brutal stabbing death shocked the Bronx community on June 20, 2018.
Funeral services were held at Our Lady of Mount Carmel Church in the Bronx for 15-year-old Lesandro Guzman-Feliz, affectionately known as Junior, who was attacked by the gang of men outside a bodega. He collapsed and died while running to a nearby hospital after being stabbed and slashed in the neck with a machete.
The crowd chanted “Justice for Junior” as the casket of Lesandro-Guzman Feliz was carried out after his funeral services.#JUSTICEFORJUNIOR pic.twitter.com/pfzOCUP8ub
— Fox5NY (@fox5ny) June 27, 2018
The funeral ended with a crowd of several hundred outside the church chanting of “Justice for Junior!” as pallbearers dressed in Yankees jerseys loaded his casket into a hearse.
Thirteen suspects were arrested on murder, manslaughter and gang assault charges, including six who were extradited from New Jersey.
UPDATE: Suspects arrested in the brutal stabbing death of 15-year-old Lesandro Guzman-Feliz returned to a Bronx courtroom today, just hours after funeral services were held for the #JusticeForJunior teen: https://t.co/RabW53Tpnp pic.twitter.com/BThNhfZaZa
— CBS New York (@CBSNewYork) June 27, 2018
Mayor Bill de Blasio said he wanted to find a way to honor the teen’s memory by naming part of the Explorers program after him.
“We want the next generation of young people who want to serve in the police to know about the young man who didn’t’ get a chance to, and be inspired by him,” de Blasio said during the “Inside City Hall” live broadcast on NY1.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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