A planned springtime water gun fight at Roy Wilkins Park in St. Albans turned deadly on April 16, 2026. Fifteen-year-old Jaden Pierre was beaten near the park’s basketball courts during an altercation involving a large group of teenagers. As the group continued to surround him, an individual allegedly produced a handgun, pulled a silver firearm from a bag and shot the unarmed teenager once in the chest. Medics took Pierre to Jamaica Hospital, where he was pronounced dead.

The shooting was witnessed by numerous teens and partially captured on video. NYPD investigators identified 18-year-old Zahir Davis as the suspected shooter and say he fled to Jamaica the day after the killing but was arrested when his return flight landed on April 25, 2026. Davis was charged with second-degree murder, gang assault and two counts of criminal possession of a weapon and pleaded not guilty at arraignment. The community held vigils for Pierre and remembered him as a cool kid and a good basketball player.

If anyone was at Roy Wilkins Park that afternoon or has information about the events leading up to the shooting, please share what you know.