A Bronx high schooler was told to “be safe” by a friend moments before being shot to death walking home from school, the victim’s devastated family told the Daily News.
Lamar Simmons, 19, was shot in the chest at E. 183rd St. and Hughes Ave. in Belmont about 2:05 p.m. Wednesday. He was less than half a mile from home when he was slain in broad daylight.
“He was a good kid,” said the victim’s sister, 30-year-old Letesha Simmons. “He wasn’t in no gang. He never caused anyone any trouble.”
Medics rushed Simmons to St. Barnabas Hospital, where he died.
Police are searching for three men last seen fleeing the scene on a scooter east on E. 183rd St. No arrests have been made.
Lamar was heading home from Urban Dove Teen Charter School II in Mott Haven when he was killed. He had been walking with a classmate but the pair had split up just moments before the shots rang out, his sister said.
“He and his friend Carmine separated and said, ‘Be safe.’ Then Carmine heard gunshots,” Letesha said.
Carmine immediately notified the victim’s family, who sprinted to the emergency room at St. Barnabas Hosptial, which happens to be located less than 1,000 feet from the family’s apartment building.
“When we got to the hospital, the cops and the doctors said he passed,” said Letesha. “When they first told me in the hospital I was screaming. I still can’t believe it.”
In addition to Letesha, Lamar is survived by an older brother.
“We’re trying to keep it together,” said Letesha. “He was the youngest. He was our baby.”
Lamar dreamed of hitting it big and buying a large house outside the city.
“He wanted to move somewhere nice,” said 18-year-old Rey Valentin, Lamar’s best friend. “Not here.”
Valentin spoke to The News at his late friend’s apartment, where he went to grieve and offer comfort to the victim’s family.
“It hurts,” he said. “It hurts a lot.”
