ByJEFF LIPTON
and he was shot in the head during a home invasion at his cousin's house in Inwood on Sept. 23.
Now his family is praying that he will be able to walk without the use of a cane and carry on a normal life. That is the hope for the now 10-year-old, who is trying to make a remarkable recovery from the near-fatal shooting.
"We're hoping that he could regain the use of his arms and legs again," said his mother Melissa Montalban, who said sometimes he uses a wheelchair to get around. "That he would be able to get around back and forth to walk, play and live a normal life."
The family still doesn't know the full extent of the injury, how much of the young boy's body would suffer paralysis or how much mental capacity has been lost from the bullet he took to the brain.
Last week, detectives investigating the case arrested a second suspect, identified as Rasheed Watson, 21, of Paterson, N.J., and charged him with first-degree robbery, officials said. Tyreek Williams, 22, of Brooklyn, was arrested on Oct. 4 at Brookdale Hospital, where he was seeking treatment after being shot in an exchange of gunfire with an occupant of the home at 47 West End Ave., police said. The boy was caught in the crossfire and taken to the hospital in extremely critical condition.
Williams, who was not arraigned until December because he was hospitalized, was charged with four counts of first-degree burglary, four counts of first-degree robbery, one count of first-degree assault, two counts of first-degree criminal use of a firearm and one count of third-degree criminal possession of a weapon. His case is still pending.
Watson was arrested on Tuesday, Jan. 9 in New Jersey after detectives reportedly looked into associates of Williams. A detective assigned to the case for the Nassau County Homicide Squad said Watson was in New Jersey "trying to change his life and was looking for work" when detectives showed up to arrest him.
Watson was extradited from New Jersey to Nassau County and was arraigned on Jan. 10 in First District Court in Hempstead, where he pleaded not guilty. Nassau County Court Judge Bonnie Chaikin ordered him held without bail, according to the Nassau County District Attorney's Office.
Detectives said they are still searching for a third suspect.
"I'm definitely pleased," Montalban said of the arrests. "I can't wait for the day that they get sentenced and are put away for a long time."
Montalban, who lives in Far Rockaway, said her son was on a sleepover at his cousin's house in Inwood when the three suspects, armed with at least two handguns, stormed into the home at about 11:10 p.m. on Sept. 23. They exchanged gunshots with one occupant of the home, a licensed pistol owner. A 22-year-old man from Far Rockaway, who was also visiting the home at the time, was also wounded during the shootout.
John was battling for his life in the early days after the shooting. "This has been my biggest nightmare," said Montalban, who added that her son lost sight in his right eye and the peripheral vision in his left eye.
She said her son, a sports fan who loves the New York Giants and Mets, held aspirations of playing football for the Far Rockaway Ravens youth football team before he was wounded. Since October, he has been undergoing rehabilitation at St. Mary's Hospital for Children in Bayside, Queens. But he was allowed to visit his family on Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year's.
"He's doing good, he's starting to walk," Montalban said.
She thanked many people for the "outpouring of support" she has received since the shooting, and especially thanked the co-workers and customers at Beach Bagel & Deli in Long Beach, where she works. The store and the students and staff at her son's school, P.S. 43 in Far Rockaway, have organized fund-raisers to provide financial assistance to the family.
"It's been very nice, really overwhelming," she said of the support her family has received.
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