A Manhattan judge on Wednesday ripped into one of two reputed teen gangbangers accused of shooting a 7-year-old girl on Harlem street — saying the brazen act “shocks the conscience of anyone living in New York.”
True Womack, 17, was denied bail by Manhattan Supreme Court Justice Stephen Antignani on attempted murder and other charges for the Monday afternoon shooting that wounded little Fatou Keita.
“The lack of consideration for everyone who lives in the city is beyond my comprehension, beyond it,” Antignani fumed during the hearing in juvenile court, berating the pouty teen, who sat hunched back in his chair during the five-minute lecture.
The judge wouldn’t allow photographers to snap pictures of Womack inside the courtroom because he felt that the teen “would be proud” to see his face on the news, and also to spare his family, who sat quietly in the courtroom gallery.
“For them to know that they raised a child who was willing to pull out a gun, fire it on a New York street and seriously injure an innocent seven-year-old girl who I read in the paper really wanted to go get her glasses fixed …,” Antignani raged, “But that is the New York that we are forced to live in.”
Womack and Daniel Idowu, 19, are accused of firing off at least nine gunshots at the corner of West 145th Street and Bradhurst Avenue at around 2:50 p.m., apparently aiming at a gang rival, according to law-enforcement sources.
Prosecutors said at Idowu’s arraignment in Manhattan Criminal Court that he tried to scale a fence with a 20-foot drop and ditch his gun while unsuccessfully running from the police — all while wearing a “Lost Cause” sweatshirt.
Both teens were remanded for firing off a barrage of bullets that missed their as-yet-unidentified intended target — instead, a single stray round struck Keita, a bystander who had just finished eating pizza with her family, in the abdomen, prosecutors and her family told The Post.
The wound perforated the girl’s stomach, diaphragm and colon, prosecutors revealed in court.
Doctors conducted a successful surgery to repair the injuries at a nearby hospital, where Keita remained under sedation Tuesday, with her anguished family by her side.
Her mom, Fatoumata Keita, continued to keep vigil at Harlem Hospital Wednesday, telling The Post her daughter was on the mend, though remained shaken and “very scared” by the incident.
“She is doing wonderful, wonderful, thank God. She is talking now,” the mom said.
Keita welcomed news of the suspects’ arrests, but noted, “it’s not only on them.”
“There are a lot of them with guns on the streets. It’s not only two,” said Keita, who previously called on Mayor Eric Adams and the city to take action in stemming the tide of gun violence targeting, and perpetrated by, Big Apple youth.
Antignani also noted the spike in shootings affecting city youngsters, saying it was fueled by an underlying “hatred” and and that Womack’s “hatred” had led to a 7-year-old girl with a “bullet inside her stomach.”
After the shooting, Idowu and Womack allegedly shed clothing — a black puffy jacket and a pair of sweatpants, respectively — in an attempt to change their appearance, prosecutors contended.
But the attempt at subterfuge didn’t work, as prosecutors said cops stopped the pair minutes after the shooting running along the east edge of Jackie Robinson Park.
Idowu allegedly tried to climb and jump a fence into the park, but hesitated long enough after being faced with a 20-foot drop to be caught by cops, court documents state.
During the unsuccessful climb, an NYPD officer also spotted Idowu throw a gun over the fence, prosecutors said.
Cops later found a 9-millimeter caliber firearm in the park near where the pair ran, along with a similar gun believed to belong to Womack, according to filings.
Idowu is next due in court Friday. Womack will have a hearing Monday to determine whether he will be tried as an adult.
James Keivom
Womack’s attorney, Sarah Legler of the Legal Aid Society, tried making a case for monetary bail, describing her client as a high school senior on track to graduate.
But the judge cut her off.
“There is no amount of monetary bail that will be set in this case where an allegation is that a 17-year-old and a 19-year-old pulled out guns on my streets — our streets in this city that we love — that we want to live in peacefully,” Antignani fired back.
“All the sadder — that we had someone on par to graduate high school and instead is sitting in handcuffs and is charged with attempted murder in the second degree,” he added.
“But that’s the life you chose … All I can say is you are remanded.”