Anti-gang forum held in wake of triple homicide

A program meant to get gangs and guns off the street met with the Wyandanch community Friday in the wake of the shooting that killed three young people and injured a fourth. As News 12 has reported,

News 12 Staff

Jun 6, 2015, 2:05 AM

Updated 3,338 days ago

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A program meant to get gangs and guns off the street met with the Wyandanch community Friday in the wake of the shooting that killed three young people and injured a fourth.
As News 12 has reported, the shooting occurred in front of 46 Davidson St. at around 11:50 p.m. Wednesday. Police say three victims, identified as William Madrey, 25, Stephanie Almedian Rivera, 23, and Ciara Smith, 23, were pronounced dead at the scene. A fourth woman, who police are not identifying, survived her gunshot wounds.
Police are investigating possible links to gang activity.
The SNUG program, which is guns spelled backward, aims to train members of the community to anticipate violence and intervene before it erupts. They also engage the community to affect change and solutions to conflict.
"Many of those gang members know that they need a change but they don't know how to go about making that change," said community activist Anne Stewart.
Femi Ayodele spent six years in prison for assault, but has turned his life around. He's now working with SNUG to help others do the same.
"There's job opportunities that people don't even know about," Ayodle told News 12. "We're trying to pull each other up and if I'm able to articulate that to the people, then they'll be more receptive because I'm one of them. I come from where you come from."
Police are still searching for the gunman behind the triple homicide. There is a cash reward for anyone with information that leads to an arrest and conviction.


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