The mother of a 15-year-old New York boy whose murder was caught on tape last year reportedly halted Thursday’s court proceedings after having an emotional breakdown while viewing her son’s final moments.
The New York Post reported that Leandra Feliz, the mother of Lesandro Guzman-Feliz, screamed and cried as she and the Bronx courtroom viewed graphic footage of her son’s stabbing death. Officers reportedly had to restrain the grieving mother and remove her from the room.
“No, no, no!” she screamed and pounded her fist as footage of her bleeding son clutching his fatal neck wound was played to the court, according to WPIX.
The Post reported that an annoyed Supreme Court Judge Robert Neary ordered a lunch recess “because someone became rather hysterical, demonstrably and screamed.”
WPIX reported that EMTs assessed Feliz at the courthouse because it appeared she was going to faint. However, she wasn’t hospitalized.
A total of 14 men, all reportedly members of the Sures set of the Trinitarios gang, are facing criminal charges in connection with Guzman-Feliz’s stabbing death. Five of the 14 men are currently on trial for the 2018 slaying, with one of the suspects, Kevin Alvarez, 19, offering his testimony Thursday for a lighter sentence.
Surveillance cameras reportedly filmed the group of men chasing the teen into a bodega before dragging him onto the sidewalk and beating and mortally wounding him. Guzman-Feliz reportedly fled the scene but bled to death before reaching a hospital.
The suspects allegedly targeted Guzman-Feliz because they believed he was affiliated with a rival gang responsible for shooting one of their members two days earlier. However, police have said the teen’s murder was the result of mistaken identity.
Continuing coverage on the trial can be read here.
[Featured image: Lesandro Guzman-Feliz, Leandra Feliz/Facebook]
