A grieving family in the Bronx made the deeply painful choice to cremate their 16-year-old daughter, Evette Jeffrey, who tragically lost her life due to a stray bullet while riding her scooter on Monday evening.
“We chose cremation so that the family could at least have something,” the girl’s heartbroken grandmother shared on Tuesday. “Her mother feels strongly about not wanting her in a cemetery, and the family shares that sentiment.”
“They took her from us. They took her from me,” the grandmother expressed, filled with sorrow.
Shortly after her statement, law enforcement apprehended a suspect not far from Rev. James A. Politt Avenue, according to a source. The teen is currently being held at the 42nd school station and faces charges of murder.
Evette was riding her scooter after school, around 5 PM, when a fight among several teenagers escalated into gunfire outside the Morisania schoolyard. NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch reported this to the media at the scene.
She was quickly transported to Lincoln Hospital, where she was pronounced dead about an hour later.
“It’s just overwhelming,” her grandmother said tearfully. “I still have to go to school. People probably know since it was reported last night. I know her friends are devastated.”
Commissioner Tisch mentioned that the violence erupted after one teenager targeted another outside 800 Home Street, an area that is home to three schools: Richard Izkield’s Health and Science Charter School, Bronx Latin, and Bronx Career and College Preparatory High School.
The fighting escalated, leading to the tragic incident involving Evette, the commissioner noted.
“She’ll always be 16,” her grandmother said. “That’s how it will always be.”
