NEW YORK (PIX11) — NYPD maritime boats and drones continued to scour the Harlem River Thursday night in search of a Bronx boy who has been missing since last Friday.
Alfa Barrie, 11, went missing with his friend,13-year-old Garrett Warren, according to police and his family. On Thursday, authorities found Warren dead in the Harlem River.
“To find out it was Garrett, the mother was inconsolable with grief. It was horrible,” said Lesha Sekou, CEO and founder of the Anti-Violence Organization Street Corner Resources.
Barrie and Warren were last seen together near the Harlem River when they disappeared after school.
As the search now focuses on Barrie, the entire community is rallying around his family of West African immigrants – awaiting any word of the boy’s fate.
“We must wait for a confirmation. So, what I’m asking, just like I asked the African community, is to just continue to pray and give out the best energy until we know anything different. We’re not giving up,” said Sekou.
The discovery of Warren’s body raises new questions: What were the circumstances that led to the boy ending up in the water? What were he and Barrie doing last Friday evening? And now, perhaps the most pressing question of all: Where is Barrie?
Investigators on Thursday continued to take witness statements and review video in and around the search, hoping for any new leads.
“At this point, we are not going to say anything. We will let the investigation keep on going. We’re still out there. We’re going to keep searching,” said Alfa’s uncle, Ahmadou Diallo.
