In the early morning hours of July 5, 2023, the echoes of Fourth of July celebrations in the Fordham Heights neighborhood of the Bronx were tragically pierced by the sound of gunfire. Eighteen-year-old Moise Figueroa, known to some as the drill rapper 'Mdot,' was fatally shot in the leg near 2256 Morris Avenue at approximately 2:20 a.m. Another 19-year-old male was also wounded in the hip during the incident but was expected to survive. Both young men were rushed to St.
Barnabas Hospital, where Figueroa was pronounced dead.
The shooting unfolded as a street celebration was winding down. Witnesses reported seeing a white BMW flee the scene shortly after the shots were fired. The vehicle was later spotted by police running a red light on Morris Avenue. After a brief attempt to evade law enforcement, the BMW crashed, leading to the apprehension of two individuals. The male occupants were identified as 19-year-old Ariel Velasquez and 28-year-old Ramon Santos.
Following their arrest, both Velasquez and Santos were charged with a litany of serious offenses, including murder, attempted murder, manslaughter, attempted manslaughter, and two counts of criminal possession of a weapon. The swift arrests were part of a broader police response to a surge of violence over the holiday weekend, which had seen numerous shootings and injuries across the borough, prompting outrage from community leaders. The death of Moise Figueroa, a young man with a burgeoning music career, left his family, friends, and the local community grappling with a profound sense of loss.
