By Jeff Lipton
No one was reported injured in the June 26 incident at the hall, at 259 Doughty Boulevard, where the gunshots were exchanged, police said.
According to investigators, the uninvited guests tried to crash the party shortly after 1 a.m. but were prevented from entering the building. Partygoers then got involved in a heated argument with the uninvited guests, which escalated into some pushing and shoving and then punches were thrown, said Detective Sgt. John King of the Fourth Squad.
Someone at the party then fired shots at the intruders as they fled the scene and ran to their cars. As they drove by the hall, the uninvited guests then returned fire in the direction of the hall entrance, officials said. No one was hit in the exchange, police added.
One group wanted to get into the party, and they were not being allowed by the other group. There was a bit of a scuffle, King said. They took some shots at one group at the party. And the people who were shot at returned fire. As they drove by, they pegged a few shots at the front door.
Bullet holes were found in the front door of the VFW Hall and a window on the north side.
Police officers from the Fourth Precinct, responding to the report of shots fired, stopped a vehicle and its occupants who matched a description of the suspects. They observed the vehicle traveling at high speed about two blocks from the VFW Hall. The officers stopped the suspects at the corner of Burnside Avenue and Hoover Street, and recovered a loaded .380 semi-automatic handgun from the vehicle, detectives said.
The occupants of the vehicle were identified as Eric Davis, 18, of Beach Channel Drive in Far Rockaway, and Rudolph Wilkinson, 21, of 137th Avenue in Jamaica, Queens, who were both charged with third-degree criminal possession of a weapon, police said.
Officials added that the suspects who were arrested did not fire any shots, but are connected somehow to the warring factions. They had some association with the people at the party, said Deputy Inspector Richard McGuire, commanding officer of the Fourth Precinct. The whole thing is still under investigation.
McGuire said he was concerned about the number of illegal guns on the street. It still is a big problem, the access to guns and the availability of guns, he said.
McGuire said his department works closely with the probation and parole departments to keep track of convicts who were jailed for weapons possession and were released after serving their time. In addition, police gather information from suspects about who may possess illegal firearms in the community.
Detectives could not say how many people attended the party or who was celebrating a graduation.
Police are still searching for the suspects who fired the shots. Crime Stoppers is offering a reward of up to $2,000 for information leading to an arrest or arrests. Anyone with information is urged to call Crime Stoppers at 800-244-TIPS. All calls will be kept strictly confidential.
