Hundreds of people turned out to attend the funeral of a 15-year-old Bronx teenager who was brutally murdered on June 20, allegedly by a Dominican street gang in a tragic case of mistaken identity.
Lesandro ‘Junior’ Guzman-Felix was stabbed to death on June 20 after being dragged out of a bodega screaming by a gang of men.
Horrifying surveillance video of the attack has shocked the city and sparked calls for a crackdown on gang violence.
On Wednesday, mourners packed into Our Lady of Mt. Carmel Church to bid farewell to Junior, an aspiring policeman.
The service went between Spanish and English and included several readings from the bible. At the heart of the service was a plea to the young people in the congregation to take a stand against violence.
Lisandro Guzman touches his son Lesandro’s coffin at the Our Lady of Mt. Carmel church in the Bronx on Wednesday
Pall bearers wearing Yankees jerseys carry the coffin of 15-year-old Lesandro ‘Junior’ Guzman-Feliz into Our Lady of Mt. Carmel Church in the Bronx on Wednesday morning
The teenager’s mother and father are shown above arriving for his funeral in the Bronx on Wednesday morning
The grieving father was consoled by other mourners before he made his way into the church on Wednesday morning
Leandra Feliz, the teenager’s mother, cries as she prepares to enter the church for his funeral on Wednesday
Lesandro Guzman-Feliz (pictured), a 15-year-old aspiring NYPD cop, was beaten and stabbed to death outside of a Bronx bodega last week in what the police say was a case of mistaken identity
‘In the name of Jesus, I invite you to renew your commitment. It’s a commitment, as human beings and as Christians, to protect the life of our people.
To prevent another tragedy. It is possible to prevent it
. We have friends, social media, we know what is going on.
We have friends, relatives. Young people who are here, take courage. Protect your life, watch out.
‘If you see something, say something and do something.
‘Don’t just take the video. Do something,’ said the pastor.
The streets surrounding the church were lined with barricades to control the crowds.
It comes after two days of wakes of vigils outside the bodega where the teenager was murdered.
Seven men, all of whom are said to be members of the Dominican street gang Trintarios, were arrested on Sunday and Monday and charged with his death.
They are Jose Muniz, 21, Jose Taverez, 21, Manuel Rivera, 18, Danel Fernandez, 21, Joniki Martinez, 24,Santiago Rodriguez, 24, and Kevin Alvarez, 19.
Six of the men were arrested in New Jersey and are awaiting extradition to the Bronx where they will face murder charges on Wednesday.
Leandra, Lesandro’s mother, waits with an NYPD officer to welcome his coffin into the church on Wednesday
Leandra was comforted by Father Jonathan Morris outside the church. There was a large NYPD presence at the scene due in part to Lesandro’s ambitions of joining the force
Lesandro’s casket was adorned with brightly colored flowers and messages of remembrance
Pall bearers carry the teenager’s coffin out of the hearse on Wednesday to take it into the church
The streets were lined by NYPD Explorers, which Lesandro was a part of, as the hearse carrying his casket drove past
A woman holds up a photograph of the teenager on Wednesday. The boy’s death has sparked outrage in the community and prompted calls for a crackdown on violence
On Tuesday night, 23-year-old Elvin Garcia from the Bronx became the eighth person to be arrested.
His arrest was announced on the steps of the 48th precinct.
Prosecutors allege the men went after Lesandro after mistaking him for a rival gang member who had been filmed having sex with one of the Trintarios’ girlfriends on Snapchat.
As the mourners arrived for the teenager’s funeral on Wednesday Garcia was arraigned.
On Tuesday, during their joint appearance in a New Jersey court, six of the defendants complained that their families were being threatened.
Most of the congregation wore whit for the service. Junior’s casket lay in the center of the church draped with a white sheet
Among those who attended the funeral were NYPD officers who directed mourners to their seats once inside the church
‘Social media has been very active about this case.
‘Their families are being threatened, children,’ public defender Judith Fallon said, according to The New York Post which attended the hearing.
Not all of the men who were arrested in New Jersey are from there. Around half have addresses in the Bronx but fled the area after footage of the attack was released by the NYPD.
Only one of them was able to communicate with the judge without the help of a translator during Tuesday’s hearing.
After being repeatedly struck with the machete, Junior somehow mustered the strength to run to a hospital up the street which is where he died.
His grieving parents have implored Mayor Bill de Blasio to do more to make the streets safer for young innocent children like Junior who find themselves becoming casualties of the city’s gang warfare.
Hundreds of mourners outside the Bronx bodega on Tuesday night where Lesandro ‘Junior’ Guzman-Feliz was murdered on June 20. It was the second day of a well-attended wake for the teenager