An 18-year-old man has been charged in the killing of Khaseen Morris, 16, who was fatally stabbed as eyewitnesses and friends videotaped the attack outside a Long Island strip mall this week.
Nassau County Police Det. Lt. Stephen Fitzpatrick told reporters the fight, which erupted outside an Oceanside strip mall on Sept. 16, involved as many as 60 teenagers and appeared to have started as a result of Morris walking another boy’s girlfriend home on Sunday night.
Morris, a 16-year-old student at Oceanside High School, was targeted by up to seven teenagers and fatally stabbed in the chest, while his 17-year-old friend suffered swelling to his head and a broken arm, police said.
Morris was rushed to hospital where he was pronounced dead the next day.
Speaking to CBS2, the teen’s sister, Keyanna Morris, described her brother as “amazing.”
“Everyone loved him and he loved everyone,” she said of her brother.
“The girl wanted him to walk her home and he was like okay,” she told the news outlet. “This girl played a game and tried to get her ex-boyfriend jealous and said somebody else walked me home.”
Authorities described their shock after many of the onlookers decided to record the brawl on their phones, rather than call for help.
“They videoed his death instead of helping him,” Fitzpatrick said. “This can’t go on. Your friends are dying while you stand there and video it. That’s egregious.”
“He told my mom this is the first time in so long that he’s been so happy because he finally found a school where he could be himself with nobody judging him,” she said.
Morris’s aunt, Kameel Gayle, added: “It’s a hard pill to swallow, sometimes I want to believe it’s a bad nightmare.”
Video footage of the fight is under review by the Nassau County police department and will be examined as part of their investigation to identify possible suspects, Fitzpatrick said.
“If you are not a part and parcel of murder of Khaseen Morris, now is the time to get in touch with us and let us know who did this and why,” he added.