Bullets Shut Down Annual Festival in Brooklyn, Several Shot, One Dead

NEW YORK—Bullets hit several attendees at the 56th annual Old Timers Day event in Brooklyn on July 27, leaving one dead at Brownsville Park.

The two-day event was one of music, dance, and celebration until it was abruptly shut down by a shootout in the late evening of its final day. A total of 12 people were shot. No arrests have been made.

Yellow evidence markers are placed next to chairs at a playground in the Brownsville neighborhood of New York, Sunday, July 28, 2019. AP Photo/Mark Lennihan

“It’s just extremely sad for something like that to happen,” said Jerome Hall, a community member who left the event hours before the shooting took place. “It was a good event, people were having fun—music, eating, and stuff like that.”

Around 10,000 people attended the festival that day, including children.

Those injured in the shooting were between the ages of 21 to 55. Jason Pagan, the 38-year-old who died, was shot in the head.

Another attendee, 60-year-old Gary Miller, told the New York Post that the party “was chaos” after the shots rang out.

“Shots rang out and the crowd was already dispersing, and you heard about 9 to 11 shots,” he told the newspaper. “And everyone was running and scattering for cover.”

The NYPD recovered one firearm.

Manhunt for 2 Suspected Gunmen

A flyer offers a reward for information on a shooting in the Brownsville neighborhood in Brooklyn where one person was shot and killed and 11 others were injured after two or more shooters opened fire during a massive block party on July 29, 2019. Spencer Platt/Getty Images

Officials confirmed that there were two suspected gunmen who are still at large. Chief of Detectives Dermot Shea said on July 28 that many of the attendees had a history with gangs—including Pagan, who was a Bloods gang member.

Shea said that gang violence could have sparked the shooting, although “whether or not that played any role” remains undetermined.

It is unknown if Pagan was a target amid the dense gathering.

A video of police officers clearing large crowds out of the park has since been uploaded to Citizen App.

Hall said he knew nothing of gang violence: “It was just senseless, it was just senseless shooting—then I heard about something that happened in California.”

A day after the shooting in Brooklyn, a 19-year-old shot and killed three people at a popular food festival in Gilroy, California. Santino William Legan, 19, opened fire on the festival with an assault-type rifle, claiming the lives of two children.

Authorities killed him on the scene. Legan’s motivations, so far, are unclear.

According to the New York Post, investigators said the shooting may have been brought about by drunkenness.

“There’s no room for that,” Hall said. “Especially if people are trying to have a good time; there’s no room for that violence.”

The Associated Press contributed to this article.