The shooting of five people in a Brooklyn park yesterday afternoon may have been a revenge shooting. One of the victims had complained to the police on Friday about his daughter being harassed by some men who were upset she was rebuffing their advances.
Rolando Pizarro, 45, was shot in the stomach while his wife Melody Amil, 37, and son Rolando Jr., 22, were both shot in the leg. They were all shot in the Hope Ballfield in Bushwick. Two others who were shot had been on the sidewalk: Wanda Espinoza, 52, was shot in the stomach and Manuel Rivera, 62, was shot in the leg.
According to the Daily News, Pizarro was the target: "His 18-year-old daughter was allegedly harassed by a group of young men while she was working a shift at a nearby McDonald’s restaurant, the neighbor said. The teen refused their advances before one of the men tossed a milkshake in her face."
A family friend, Ivette Miranda, told the Post, "She called her dad, Rolando, and he went there to the McDonald’s and called the cops. He filed a police report right there. Those guys are bad men. They wanted to get back at Rolando for filing a report."
She added, "They retaliate the next day, look this is what happened," and "If the police can’t take care of us, we’ll have to start taking care of ourselves."
All the victims are in stable condition. Pizarro's 18-year-old daughter was not present—she was working at McDonald's.
