On the evening of September 27, 2019, 18-year-old James Scott was standing with a group in the courtyard of the NYCHA Forties complex in Far Rockaway when an unidentified man in a black hoodie and cap opened fire from a dimly lit pathway. Scott, a new father to a baby boy named Kaiden, suffered gunshot wounds to his chest and legs and was taken to Saint John’s Episcopal Hospital, where he was pronounced dead. A 25-year-old man, Corey Gasby, was also shot in the head and taken to Jamaica Hospital Medical Center in critical condition.

Neighbors placed a makeshift memorial of crimson candles at the site where Scott fell. He was described as a young man looking forward to raising his son and planning to work out with his father at the local community gym. No arrests had been announced and the shooter remained at large.

If anyone was in the Forties complex courtyard that night or has information about the shooter, please come forward.