NEW HAVEN, Conn. (WTNH) — An emotional vigil was held for a 28-year-old man who was shot and killed sitting in his own home on Greenwood Street on Thursday night. Police are still looking for the shooter. That entire New Haven neighborhood is now on edge.
The city’s ShotSpotter system reported ten shots fired shortly after 10 p.m. on Thursday.
Friends say Joshua Rivera was at home playing video games, something he loved to do. The bullet went through a window on the first floor, hitting him in the head. Loved ones, including his cousin Jailenee Miranda, attended the vigil to say goodbye.
“It’s a really hard time right now for the family because everybody loved him,” said Miranda.
Dozens of people comforted each other and talked about who Rivera was, lighting candles and trying to understand how this could happen.
“It’s just hard not to see him when I’m here now,” said Rivera’s friend Tevin Roberts. “It’s very hard not to see him here.”
Rivera’s neighbor, Robyn Young-Ali, organized the vigil. She put her table outside Rivera’s home for everyone to gather around. She lost her own brother to gun violence.
“It’s hurtful. It’s like it brought a flashback on me because the only thing is, I saw my brother in this,” she said. “Josh was like my blood.”
A neighbor’s surveillance cameras captured the suspect as he ran away. Neighbors are hoping for justice and closure.
“Josh was one of a kind,” said Young-Ali. “You’ll never find another Josh out there.”
Police do not know if the shooter knew people were in the house when he fired the shots. If you have any information you are asked to call police at (203) 946-6304. Calls may be made anonymously.
