Suspect in senseless shooting spree of DC, NYC homeless arrested

A man suspected in a string of shootings of homeless people in New York City and the District of Columbia has been arrested Tuesday morning in the nation’s capital, said police.

Gerald Brevard III, 30, was arrested in southeast D.C. in connection to a series of predatory attacks on homeless – three in D.C., two in New York City. One victim in each city died from their injuries.

“He is currently being interviewed at our Homicide Branch,” the D.C. police announced on Twitter at 5:40 a.m. “Additional information will be forthcoming. Thanks to the community for all your tips.”

ARRESTED: Early this AM, law enforcement arrested the suspect in Washington, DC. He is currently being interviewed at our Homicide Branch. Additional information will be forthcoming. Thanks to the community for all your tips. pic.twitter.com/lvFu3LeMTd

— DC Police Department (@DCPoliceDept) March 15, 2022

The first attack was on Mar. 3 in D.C., which was followed by two more shootings. The first fatality was found in a burning tent on Mar. 9. He was initially thought to have died from burns, but an autopsy revealed he had died of multiple stab and gunshot wounds, reports the New York Post.

Security cameras in New York City caught a similarly dressed man attacking homeless people on Saturday, Mar. 12. The first incident was around 4:30 a.m., where Brevard shot a homeless man unprovoked and fled when his victim screamed in pain. Shortly after in another location, a camera captured him kicking a homeless man in a sleeping bag before pulling out his gun and shooting him point-blank, killing him.

“He looked around. He made sure no one was there. And he intentionally took the life of an innocent person,” said Eric Adams, mayor of New York City.

Adams joined DC Mayor Muriel Bowser and their police officials on Monday to announce that ballistic evidence had linked all five shootings to the same gun. They also released a high-resolution photo of the suspect from an ATM machine, who turned out to be Brevard.

Brevard’s father expressed his “deepest condolences” to his son’s victims to New York’s WABC-TV on Tuesday, saying he was a “is a good person” but “suffers from mental illness.”

Father of suspect in cold blooded murders of homeless men in NYC and DC tells @ABC7NY: “To the families of the victims, I extend my deepest condolences and am truly sorry for their losses and the circumstances. He is a good person… 1/3

— CeFaan Kim (@CeFaanKim) March 15, 2022

“The bigger picture is not that he has mental illness, but the number of times that he’s been within the judicial system and how the system has failed regarding the treatment of so many, including my son,” his father said, according to reporter CeFaan Kim.

“I tried to have him committed on several occasions… [I’d] put my hands around him and hug him. Just ask why.?

Brevard has a criminal history that includes several misdemeanors and at least one felony, reports The Wall Street Journal.

There was $70,000 in rewards attached to Brevard’s arrest - $25,000 from each city and $20,000 from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms, reports the Post. It is not immediately clear if they had been claimed.