A 17-year-old teenager has been apprehended in connection to the heartbreaking murder of another teenager in the Bronx, as confirmed by authorities on Friday. The victim, identified as Juan J. Pena, 18, was described as being “full of life” with aspirations of joining the Navy. The younger suspect has been charged with murder, manslaughter, and criminal possession of a weapon in relation to the fatal incident that occurred on February 2 in the early hours on Park Avenue near East 176th Street in the Tremont neighborhood.
The arrest of the teenager took place on February 18, and while charged as an adult, the case is proceeding in the youth division of Bronx Supreme Criminal Court. Just three days before his untimely death, Juan Pena had expressed his excitement about his future with his aunt, Shery Olivo, stating, “Tia, I’m good, I’m going into the Navy, I’m happy. I just took an exam.”
Following a court appearance, the suspect was granted supervised release and ordered to wear an electronic monitoring device while further investigations are conducted. A representative from the Bronx District Attorney’s Office stated, “We requested that the defendant be placed on supervised release with electronic monitoring while additional evidence is gathered in the ongoing investigation.”
Sources have indicated the possibility of other individuals being involved in the fatal shooting, and initially, the NYPD released images of three young men believed to be connected to the incident. Reports suggest that the shooting may have originated from a dispute outside an afterparty venue, with a black sedan pulling up and an individual inside exchanging words with the victim before the shooting took place.
Juan, who tragically succumbed to his injuries after being rushed to a nearby hospital, had recently graduated from Bronx Leadership Academy High School and had aspirations of serving in the Navy. The victim’s mother, Anayeli Pena, expressed her desire for justice, emphasizing, “They didn’t kill a dog, they killed a son with a future, with a bright future. I don’t want his death to go unpunished.”
Describing Juan as a young man full of life and potential, Anayeli Pena insisted on seeking justice for her son’s untimely demise, stating, “Justice is the only thing I can ask for. What else can I ask for? I want them to pay for what they did to my son. They didn’t kill a dog. They killed a young boy full of life. They killed him, and they also killed me alive.”
Juan, who was the eldest of three siblings and lived with his mother, was described as a non-troublemaker without any enemies by his aunt, Shery Olivo, a Dominican author. Recalling the last encounter with her nephew, Olivo shared his words of hope and ambition, “Tia, I’m good, I’m going into the Navy, I’m happy. I just
