Kylis Fagbemi and Aaliyah Gonzales identified as fatal Baltimore mass shooting victims during Brooklyn block party. 28 others injured, no arrests. No known motive.
Maryland authorities have identified the two victims fatally shot dead during a mass shooting at a Baltimore block party over the weekend as a recent female high school student and a 20 year old local man.
Kylis Fagbemi, 20, and Aaliyah Gonzales, 18, were identified as the fatalities in an incident which saw 28 people injured, three critically.
South Baltimore’s Brooklyn neighborhood was hosting its annual ‘Brooklyn Day‘ community event when gunfire erupted, wounding dozens and killing two. Police officers responded to multiple shooting reports at about 12:35 a.m. Sunday in the 800 block of Gretna Court.
Twerking and dancing in the streets hours before gunshots
Gonzales and Kylis Fagbemi died at a hospital, authorities said. Twenty-eight other gunshot victims, ranging in age from 13 to 32, were transported or walked into area hospitals for treatment. Three of those 28 were in critical condition as of early Sunday morning.
Acting Baltimore Police Commissioner Richard Worley told Fox Baltimore that out of the 28 other victims at least 14 were minors and 9 remain in hospital, some in a critical condition.
Among the injured, police identified two 13-year-olds, a 14-year-old girl, three 15-year-olds, five16-year-olds, four 17-year-olds, five 18-year-olds and three 19-year-olds; as well as three women ages 20, 23 and 32, and both a 22-year-old and 31-year-old man. More than half of the victims are female, and over three-quarters of them are teenagers.
Video footage which surfaced in the wake of the tragedy showed party goers twerking and dancing in the streets hours before an unknown gunman opened fire.
Police say they’re still looking for suspects but called the crime scene ‘extensive’ and said other jurisdictions were also working with them to identify the motive for the attack.
‘We know for sure there is definitely more than one [suspect]. We don’t know exactly how many, but we do know more than one person was shooting,’ said Worley.
‘MY BABY!!! Worst day of my life! I cannot do life without her. I NEED HER!!,’
Gonzales’ mother, Krystal, revealed the 18-year-old had recently graduated from high school.
The grieving mom was in disbelief posting pictures and videos of her daughter prior to her untimely death.
‘MY BABY!!! Worst day of my life! I cannot do life without her. I NEED HER!!,’ she captioned the post.
‘Why would they do this to a perfect angel. I love you so much baby. I didn’t get there fast enough. God this is a mistake!!! Please!!’
Hundreds commented on Krystal’s post sharing their condolences.
‘This was a reckless, cowardly act that happened here and has permanently altered many lives and cost two people their lives,’ Mayor Brandon Scott said Sunday afternoon.
‘I want those responsible to hear me, hear me very clearly: We will not stop until we find you. And we will find you.’
@flyyboyron Good thing I left when I did it was fun but scary! #trending #bmore #maryland #baltimore #brooklynbaltimore #cherryhill #blockparty #fypシ ♬ Tag usss – Brooke 👩🏼🎤
‘It was fun but scary!’
A video (see directly above) taken about three hours prior to the shooting showed a crowd of hundreds gathered at the block party dancing and twerking before the night descended into horror.
The 12 second clip was posted to TikTok with a time stamp and caption that read: ‘Good thing I left when I did, it was fun but scary!’
One witness, Lakell Nelson, 54, told the Baltimore Sun that during the block party people had been mistaking the sound of fireworks. But it wasn’t a false alarm when the shooting began.
‘The shots were just going on and on and on,’ Nelson said, then added two women walked up to her and stated they had been shot.
‘I kinda didn’t believe them at first because they were walking up the street. I said, ‘Show me,’ and the girl was like, ‘I was shot in my butt,’ she said. ‘When she turned around, I saw the hole through her shorts.’
Combatting gun violence in Baltimore
Fellow witness Terry Brown was standing outside his home when the shooting started. He said people ran from the courtyard, jumping fences and calling for loved ones.
‘They were running for their lives,’ Brown said.
‘It was so many kids. It was chaos,’ Brown said. ‘Parents were running around looking for their children, hollering and screaming, and don’t know if their children has a bullet in them.’
The Sunday violence is likely the largest shooting in Baltimore history. But official data about mass shootings only dates back to 2014. The Gun Violence Archive documents the nation’s shootings, lists no Baltimore incidents with more than a dozen victims since 2014, the earliest mass shooting report available.
It comes as Baltimore continues to grapple with persistently high levels of violent crime, notching more than 300 homicides in 2022 for the eighth year in a row. Attention this year has increasingly centered on young people who are committing or falling victim to gun violence the Baltimore Sun reports.
As of Friday in Baltimore, police had reported 139 homicides for this year, down from 176 during the corresponding period in 2022. Nonfatal shootings are also down slightly, at 306 so far this year, compared with 351 through June last year. Residents and law enforcement are bracing for the warm summer months, when there tends to be a rise in violence.
Metro Crime Stoppers is offering an $8K reward leading to an arrest and charges.
To date authorities have yet to identify any suspects or made any arrests following Sunday’s block party mass shooting. No immediate motive was known.
