Despite city-wide decline in gun violence, Bronx nonprofits still at work

New York City saw the lowest recorded number of shooting victims in history during the first half of 2025, the New York Police Department announced last week. Despite this, shootings in the northwest Bronx, and beyond, persist.

Two major incidents in the greater Riverdale area occurred this month. 

On June 30, a 30-year-old man was shot in the ankle while driving near Kappock Street and Netherland Avenue. He drove himself to New York Presbyterian Allen Hospital in stable condition. No arrests have been made, and the investigation remains ongoing, according to the NYPD’s press office.

A car fire near the shooting was reported by News 12 The Bronx, though it is unclear if the two incidents are connected.

A few weeks prior, 18-year-old Rize Ashmeade was shot by an unidentified individual near 18 West Kingsbridge Road after a verbal dispute. EMS transported Ashmeade to Saint Barnabas Hospital in stable condition, but he died from his injuries nine days later. 

Authorities arrested a 17-year-old boy shortly after. He was charged with two counts of attempted murder, assault and criminal possession of a weapon, according to police officials. 

The NYPD did not report any other incidents in the 50th Precinct or 52nd Precinct patrol areas to The Press. 

In comparison to year-to-date stats from 2024, the 52nd Precinct — Bedford Park, Fordham, Kingsbridge, Norwood, Bronx Park and University Heights — reported a 50 percent decrease in murder, but a 20 percent increase in felony assault. 

The 50th Precinct — Riverdale, Fieldston, Kingsbridge, Marble Hill and Spuyten Duyvil — saw a 5 percent decrease in felony assault, and no change in murder. 

The numbers notwithstanding, local nonprofits continue to work against gun violence, especially those focused on young adults. 

The Angellyh Yambo Foundation was established in 2023 after Angellyh Yambo, a 16-year-old honor student, was shot and killed on her way home from school in Melrose. Angellyh’s father, Manuel Yambo, lives in Kingsbridge and works in Riverdale. 

The foundation was created by Mary Hernandez, Angellyh’s aunt, to help change the community through youth empowerment. Rooted in addressing the link between gun violence and poverty in the Bronx, the foundation implements programs related to anti-bullying, increasing youth awareness and preparing for college, among other endeavors. 

Earlier this month, students from University Prep Charter High School in the South Bronx presented a map they created with the help of the foundation and RomoGIS, a Detroit-based data design company. 

The map compiled incidents of gun violence across the borough between 2014 and 2023, researched over the course of four months. The initiative was a chance for students to discuss violent hotspots and the history of their neighborhoods, as well as contribute ideas for solutions. 

At the end of the program, Alexandra Maruri, a consultant for the foundation and Hernandez’s sister, said she noticed a change in the students’ attitudes. 

“The kids were really excited,” she said, “It had an effect on the students, not only to learn about GIS [Geographic Information System], but also what’s happened in the Bronx to cause the issues that it has.” 

Maruri said she wants to extend the program’s outreach to Kingsbridge Heights, where she spent her teenage years. 

“Every neighborhood is different, and it’s being treated as generic,” Maruri said. 

Bronx Rises Against Gun Violence, a program by nonprofit Good Shepherd Services, uses data to target areas with high shooting incidents. From here, it offers a variety of wraparound services to crime victims and at-risk young adults. 

BRAG also operates several community violence interruption programs — one of which is in the Kingsbridge Heights area, and encompasses the 52nd Precinct’s patrol neighborhoods. 

The team is made up of outreach workers, supervisors and violence interrupters, who are trained to mediate potentially dangerous situations. During peak hours when data shows gun violence occurs, team members are in the community to de-escalate conflict.

BRAG is made up of individuals with direct connection to the community, some who were involved with high-risk activities themselves as young adults, Senior Vice President David Caba said. 

There is also a response program based in Saint Barnabas Hospital, where most trauma victims in the area are taken. BRAG implements anti-retaliation methods as well as relocation and therapeutic services for victims and their families. The organization worked with Ashmeade’s family, Caba said. 

“Our approach is a public-health approach,” Caba said. “Violence spreads, it clusters; people get infected. When you’re working on diseases and contagions like that, you look for the cure.”

Caba encourages anyone in need of help to visit a Good Shepherd Services or BRAG building, including those on Burnside Avenue and Jerome Avenue, East 233rd Street and Bussing Avenue, and on University Avenue in between West 181 Street and West 183 Street.

BRAG can also be contacted via social media. 

“I’m a born and raised Bronxite,” Caba said. “This is my borough, this is my home, and I don’t want another young person to have to deal with the tragedies that come with those high-risk activities.”