EASTCHESTER, the Bronx — The NYPD on Friday announced multiple arrests in a shootout at a Bronx car dealership last September that left a quick-thinking father wounded after he shielded his kids from gunfire.
According to police, seven alleged gang members are facing charges in the shooting, including a man arrested in March and several others arrested just this past week.
Shots rang out inside the Boston Road dealership on the evening of Sept. 21, 2020, when three men opened fire on another man, who let off several rounds in response, according to police.
Anthony Jefferson was in the dealership with his three children, shopping for a new vehicle to surprise his wife for her birthday, he told PIX11’s Nicole Johnson last year.
Surveillance video showed Jefferson immediately huddle over his kids on the floor behind a couch as bullets flew around them and glass windows shattered nearby.
“I just went into daddy mode,” the dad recounted. “They could have been burying me or my kids.”
The innocent bystander, called a hero by many, was struck in the thigh amid the gunfire. He was hospitalized and treated for his injuries.
Luckily, none of the children were physically injured in the traumatizing ordeal.
According to the NYPD, 22-year-old Hasani John was arrested on March 5 and faces assault and weapons charges.
This past week, police arrested Daijon Crawford, 21, Tahari Pritchard, 20, Dorien Alexander, 20, Aaron Heredia, 21, Akeyle Baker, 22, and Zykeith Fearon, 21.
They will all face attempted murder charges, according to the NYPD, who said all the men are believed to be gang members.
Nicole Johnson, Anthony DiLorenzo and Aliza Chasan contributed to this report.
Watch Nicole Johnson’s 2020 interview with the heroic father days after the incident:
