Extra security after 3 shootings near schools in Manhattan which may be connected

Community members held a prayer vigil on the Upper West Side Wednesday afternoon as police search for suspects connected to the shootings near schools. 

Police stepped up patrols near the schools Wednesday, a ramped up police presence in front of schools where shootings sent two campuses into lockdowns Tuesday.

There are more officers guarding schools in Manhattan as the search continues for the gunmen.

Outside Martin Luther King Jr. educational complex, CBS2's Dave Carlin met with parents Michele Sweeting-DeCaro and Louis DeCaro. Their son Louis was safely indoors during Tuesday's shooting outside the school that injred a student and a bystander. 

"I'll be honest, I didn't want him to come to school today. I was afraid that something was going to happen or that somebody would come back," Michele said. 

"The idea that kids can go to school and not come home," Louis said. 

Tuesday's gun violence was in three separate spots with three people shot. A 19-year-old man was arrested and is a charged with attempted murder and weapons possession.

Police say three other suspects are on the run.

Investigators believe these shootings are connected and possibly gang related.

On the Upper West Side, a lunchtime prayer vigil brought together faith leaders and parents to talk about student safety.

"And we're here to come together collectively as one to address the senseless shooting that happened yesterday," said chaplain Robert Rice.

"We need to stop the violence," said Olinda Jackson, mother a 10th grader. 

The DeCaros were also there, not only as concerned parents. Both are faith leaders themselves, and both passionate that a mix of prayer and urgent action can start to make a difference. 

According to police, the 19-year-old suspect they arrested three prior arrests: Two for narcotic sales this year, and one indictment for a 2021 robbery with a firearm. 

Some New York City school students started their day by being greeted with extra security. 

This comes after three separate shootings just hours apart on the Upper West Side as well as in Harlem and East Harlem. 

Wednesday, you couldn't help but notice the amped up police presence in front of one school in Harlem. At 128th and Madison, there was a police car on almost every corner. It's part of the NYPD's "Level 2 mobilization" effort as the search for the gunmen continue. 

"Does it make you feel any better that there's amped up police presence around the school building given what happened?" CBS2's Elijah Westbrook asked. 

"Yes, it does. It does. But again, it starts with the parents. It starts with us," a parent named Gary said. 

Parents like Gary and his son were among many who are on edge Wednesday after three separate shootings Tuesday - two of them right in front of schools. 

In Harlem, school safety officers made their presence known, walking up and down the block. 

"For me, it's about safety and the well-being of my children. The last thing I want is a stray bullet to hit my child," said parent Jasmine Bowes. 

Bowes told Westbrook it isn't the first time something like this has happened in front of her children's school. Now she worries about her kids playing in the schoolyard. 

"We are going to talk to the school and find out what are the precautions they're going to take regarding the kids playing in the schoolyard. That's my biggest concern right now," Bowes said. 

The violence on Tuesday unfolded on the Upper West Side, Harlem and East Harlem. Police say three people were shot. A 19-year-old man has been arrested, and is now being charged with attempted murder and weapons charges. 

Three others are on the run. Investigators believe they're all somehow connected. 

The description of the suspects police gave is vague, but they're looking for three males last seen wearing dark clothing. 

"It's sickening. It's bad," Gary said. 

"I'm new to the area, but it took me by shock," one parent said. 

A motive in the shootings still hasn't been determined, but investigators for now believe they're gang-related. 

Anyone with any information is asked to call the NYPD's Crime Stoppers hotline at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477), or for Spanish, 1-888-57-PISTA (74782). You can also submit a tip via their website or via DM on Twitter, @NYPDTips. All calls are kept confidential.  

A 19-year-old is facing attempted murder and other charges in Tuesday's shootings, police sources tell CBS2.

Sources say Cheick Coulibaly faces attempted murder, assault, criminal use of a firearm and criminal possession of a weapon charges. 

Extra security will be in place Wednesday near several Upper Manhattan schools after three shootings just hours apart Tuesday. 

Police believe the shootings may be connected, and they're searching for three suspects. 

Three separate shootings in the northern part of Manhattan on Tuesday have police on high alert.

The NYPD believes all the shootings are connected. As investigators try to find the motive behind the gun violence, they are looking into a possible feud between two housing projects.

The incident commanded a large police presence and Level 2 mobilization.

"We're calling in multiple resources from other boroughs, transit, housing, and were deploying to areas the best we know to slow this down," NYPD Chief of Patrol John Chell said.

Three people were hospitalized as a result of the gun violence.

The day of terror started just before 10 a.m. when a 17-year-old student got into an argument with another male outside of Martin Luther King High School. The dispute escalated and the victim was shot twice in the stomach. Police say he ran to another school nearby and was rushed to the hospital.

"Enough this enough. It makes my heart hurt, as a mother who lost two kids to gun violence," said Jackie Rowe Adams of the group Harlem Mothers S.A.V.E.

The teen is expected to survive. The shooter was taken into custody and a gun was recovered.

At around 1 p.m., four students leaving Renaissance High School got into a physical altercation with three men, police said. Shots rang out and a 16-year-old was hit once, so was a 27-year-old, who was an unintended target.

One witness didn't want to show his identity out of fear of retaliation.

"I hear the shots, four or five shots. They came from 127 to 128 and then I see three young people between 17 and 20 years old," the witness said.

At around 3 p.m., shots were fired at 105th and Park Avenue. That scene ended at 115th and Third Avenue, police said.

With the majority of Tuesday's shootings happening outside schools, the spokesman for Teamsters Local 237 teamsters, which represents New York school safety agents, said "1,500 fewer school safety agents equals 12 consecutive days of violence."

"They're the real deal. They know how to get down with the kids. They know how to speak the kids' language, and the kids need that," Adams said.

The Level 2 mobilization will continue through Tuesday night and into Wednesday's school arrival and dismissal.

Although police were able to arrest one individual, three shooters are still at large. 

There were three shootings in a span of about five hours Tuesday in Manhattan, and police say they may all be connected. 

In response to the shootings, the NYPD has activated a Level 2 mobilization. That means calling in more resources. 

So far there has been an arrest in an earlier shooting, but police are still looking for the suspect in a shooting in Harlem. 

The first shooting took place around 9:50 a.m. near Martin Luther King high school on the Upper West Side. Police say a 16-year-old was shot, and a suspect was taken into custody. 

Police tweeted out a picture of a gun they recovered in that shooting. 

Hours later, investigators say there was another shooting near another school at 128th Street and Madison Avenue in Harlem. That one was believed to be gang motivated. 

"Approximately 12:50 today, we had four students coming out of Renaissance High School. They walked down to this corner right there, they are approached by at least three males. A physical altercation ensues, shots rang out," said NYPD Chief of Patrol John Chell. 

Police say a 27-year-old innocent bystander was shot once in the leg, and a 16-year-old - the intended target - was also shot. 

Three teens then ran off down 127th Street wearing dark clothes. 

One man heard the gunfire. 

"I hear, like, five shots, and I see the person, he got shot, in the corner — then I see his friends, they try to help him, I try to call 911," the man said. 

Then there was a third shooting, around 3 p.m., at 105th Street and Park Avenue. 

Police sources say it doesn't appear anyone was struck, but it was also near a school. 

"Right now, we are proceeding like they are all connected. Why do I say that? The proximity, the geography around schools, age of our victims," Chell said. "Right now, in the city of New York, we have a level two mobilization. We are calling in multiple resources from all the boroughs, transit, housing, our school safety division, and we're deploying to areas the best we know to slow this down." 

Police say that Level 2 mobilization will continue Tuesday night and go into school arrival and dismissal Wednesday. 

Police are searching for suspects in two of the three shootings. 

Anyone with any information is asked to call the NYPD's Crime Stoppers hotline at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477), or for Spanish, 1-888-57-PISTA (74782). You can also submit a tip via their website or via DM on Twitter, @NYPDTips. All calls are kept confidential.  

Two people were shot at around 12:50 p.m. at 128th Street and Madison Avenue. 

Police say one of the victims, 16, was the intended target. Another victim, 27, was an unintended target. 

In addition, there was a report of shots fired at 105th Street and Park Avenue. 

"Right now, we are proceeding like they are all connected. Why do I say that? The proximity, the geography around schools, age of our victims," NYPD Chief of NYPD Chief of Patrol John Chell. 

At least one incident was gang motivated, Chell said. 

Police say the shooting at 128th Street happened after four students from Renaissance High School were approached by three males. A "physical altercation" took place, and the 16-year-old and 27-year-old were shot. 

"Right now, in the city of New York, we have a level two mobilization. We are calling in multiple resources from all the boroughs, transit, housing, our school safety division, and we're deploying to areas the best we know to slow this down," Chell said. "This surge of level two immobilization will continue tonight and we'll go into the school arrival and dismissal tomorrow."

A 17-year-old student is in stable condition after getting shot near Martin Luther King High School on the Upper West Side. 

The student was shot twice in the stomach, police said. 

"I just want to commend the community members of the Upper West Side. Their quick diligence for calling 911, and the observations they made. These actions by this community up here allowed our precinct officers from the 20 precinct to quickly apprehend who we believe to be the shooter, firearm recovered, and no further incidents," said NYPD Chief of Patrol John Chell. 

It happened around 9:50 a.m. when the student was involved a "dispute with four to five males, looks like in their teens." 

The suspect pulled a gun and fired, hitting the 17-year-old student "multiple times." 

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