'I Want Justice For Him:' Father Of Zayid Muthana, Bodega Owners Call For Protection After 18-Year-Old Shot At Family Store In Brooklyn
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- An 18-year old was shot while trying to make a living.
On Wednesday, the father of the Brooklyn teenager gunned down inside his family's bodega spoke out. Zayid Muthana is fighting for his life, as police search for the man who shot him in the head, CBS2's Jessica Moore reported.
New surveillance video shows the moment the teenager was shot in cold blood inside M&M Grocery on Nostrand Avenue in East Flatbush on Saturday night.
"I want to talk about my son, Zayid. He's a good kid," Fahd Muthana said.
He fought back tears as he said his oldest son just went into surgery to remove the bullet still lodged in his head.
"He's doing bad, fighting for his life in the hospital. The bullet is still in him, but thank God. Hopefully, he'll be good," Fahd Muthana said.
Bodega owners and community leaders rallied in support of the Muthana family.
Randy Gonzalez, from the United Bodegas of America, said he feels his life is in danger every day.
"I got five kids. What if something happens to me? What's going to happen to my family? We need your help. We need you guys to be responsive," he said. "I'm sorry, it's a little bit emotional, because it can happen to me, like it happened him."
Monique Chandler-Waterman, founder of East Flatbush Village, called on the community to stand up against gun violence.
"Be very nosy when it comes to your community, because bullets have no name," she said. "This is not an 'I' problem, this is a 'we' problem."
Moments before the shooting, video shows the suspect and his accomplice appear to walk off with an item. When Zayid Muthana goes after them, the gunman shoots him in the head and runs off.
"I'm old and strong, but his mother, whew, she's holding on. Seeing him at first, she couldn't even talk, but when she saw him in the hospital with her own eyes, then she got better," Fahd Muthana said.
The elder Muthana said his son wants to be in real estate and was working in the deli after school to help provide for his family.
"He's always working hard, tying to bring food to the table and I want justice for him, for those people that did that to him," Fahd Muthana said. "Justice is to put away those people who did it to this kid trying to make a living. He didn't bother nobody. He didn't do nothing to nobody. I want them to bring them to justice… to serve [jail time]."
Fahd Muthana said his son's doctors are hopeful he'll make a full recovery, but it could depend on the outcome of Wednesday's surgery.
Meanwhile, police are still looking for the two young men responsible for the shooting.
The Yemeni American Merchants Association is asking the NYPD for help increasing patrols around small businesses like the Muthana's bodega.
Anyone with information about the suspects 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.
Editor's note: This story first appeared on Dec. 1.
