One arrested, five injured in Kingsbridge shootings

Police have arrested a suspect in a June 20 shooting in Kingsbridge that left three wounded.

The shots were the second set to ring out at the Fort Independence Houses last Monday, and followed an earlier incident that left two wounded. No suspects have been arrested in the first shooting, though cops say the two incidents were likely related.

For the second time in one day, bullets flew outside the Fort Independence Houses at around 6:30 p.m last Monday. Two men, ages 17 and 18, and a woman, 20, suffered bullet wounds to both their right and left legs after they were hit outside the building’s Fort Independent Street entrance.  The female victim was also hit in the right buttocks.

Police said a witness saw four men “running away” from the scene. 

“They ran in such a manner that it alerted this individual, who thought, ‘Hey I just heard shots fired and these guys are running away from the scene,’” Captain Kevin Burke, the commander of the 50th Precinct, said.

Minutes later, they were at a nearby C-Town Supermarket, where their images were captured on video surveillance, which helped lead to the arrest.

“They ran into the C-Town and it immediately alerted workers because of the way they were acting, almost as if they were running away from something,” Capt. Burke said. “They asked for a local cab number, which indicated they didn’t know the area very well.” 

In one of the surveillance photos released by the NYPD, a muscular man identified by police as Robert Cruz is pictured staring at a cell phone as he exits the C-Town, wearing a white tank top, gray sweatpants and white sneakers. 

Police said Mr. Cruz was collared while at a bar on East 180th Street in the Bronx’s 48th Precinct on Sunday and a source said a victim identified Mr. Cruz in a lineup. 

Although Mr. Cruz is not listed in the NYPD’s gang member database, police said they haven’t ruled out that the shootings and suspects could be associated with a gang.