KINGSBIRDGE, The Bronx (PIX11) — Angellyh Yambo had the potential to go far. Her mother is sure of it, but she will not get the chance to see her daughter shine.
“Now she’s famous the way she always said she would be. It wasn’t the way I wanted, but at least we turned this tragedy into a purpose,” said Angelou’s mother, Yanely Henriquez.
Yambo was just 16 years old when she died. On April 8, 2022, she was hit by a stray bullet outside her school in Mott Haven. She was not the intended target.
The straight-A student wanted to be a doctor and had big dreams for her future. Her family will never see those dreams come true. Instead, they gathered for a bittersweet ceremony on the anniversary of her death.
The corner of Bailey Avenue and Bailey Place in the Kingsbridge Heights neighborhood where she grew up has been renamed in her honor.
“There wasn’t a person who didn’t love her because she was a sparkle, a sassy diva. She was loved by everybody,” said Henriquez.
Relatives, classmates and local leaders all gathered for her tribute.
“It’s an emotional day, but it is a day that we come together to reflect, to honor and to celebrate a life that was cut short, but a life that made a difference,” said Bronx Borough President Vanessa Gibson.
Mayor Eric Adams said that Angellyh is just one of the tragic cases that shine a light on gun violence and what he considers a failure in the criminal justice system.
“We are extremely dogmatic about removing these illegal guns off our streets. It is killing our community in a real way. The extreme repeated offenders of violence over and over again have no place on our streets. We cannot continue to be a safe haven for violent people,” said Adams.
“Angellyh’s not gonna be the last one. I hate to say that. I hate to say she’s not going to be the last one,” Angellyh’s father, Manuel Yambo, agreed.
The suspect, in this case, is Jeremiah Ryan. He was 17 at the time of the shooting. He is facing murder, attempted murder, and weapons charges.
Bronx District Attorney Darcel Clarke said her office is also spearheading efforts to combat the sales of ghost gun kits sold online.
“A ghost gun is what killed her and that means somebody ordered parts and built it in their house,” said Clarke.
“I just want these guns off the street. We don’t need no more people dying,” said the grieving mother.
The family started the Angellyh Yambo Foundation in her memory. The goal is to prevent violence by providing safe spaces for kids to go to after school.
