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First responders were dispatched to the Triangle Deli on Ashburton Avenue in Yonkers at approximately 9:35 p.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 27, 2020, where there was a report of a man who had been shot inside the store.
Upon arrival, officers from the Yonkers Police Department found city resident Javon Merrill, age 27, inside the store with a gunshot wound to his chest. Merrill was treated at the scene and transported to an area hospital, where he was later pronounced dead.
Police said that the initial investigation - aided by a well-placed security camera - found that Merrill was exiting the deli when he was approached by two suspects, including 16-year-old Maliki Johnson, who pulled out a handgun, shooting him once in the chest before fleeing.
According to police, investigators found an article of clothing that was discarded by one of the suspects, which led to a DNA match of Johnson, who is from the City of Dover, Delaware, and has family in Yonkers.
Investigators said they believe that Johnson was visiting the City of Yonkers and may have had associations with local street gangs including the 300 Bloodhound Brims, and that the shooting was the result of an earlier dispute between the victim and those same groups.
Last week, members of the US Marshals Service in Delaware arrested the teen, who was brought back to Yonkers.
Westchester County District Attorney Mimi Rocah said that an indictment was unsealed on Tuesday, Aug. 10 charging Johnson with second-degree murder and criminal possession of a weapon.
"This tragedy highlights the urgent need to address gun violence in our cities, particularly among young people,” Rocah said in a statement. “Not only are friends and family mourning the loss of Mr. Merrill, but another young person’s life has been irrevocably changed because of his own actions that day.
"We will continue to work with Yonkers Police and our law enforcement partners at the federal, state, and local level to try and eradicate gun violence in our neighborhoods.”
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