Bronx Man Arrested for Murder of Basketball Player Brandon Hendricks

BY JENNA BAGCAL

On July 6, police arrested the shooter accused of killing 17-year-old Bronx basketball star, Brandon Hendricks, a recent high school graduate ready to start a college hoops career.

The suspect in the fatal June 28 shooting was 22-year-old Najhim Luke, whom police identified on their official Twitter account last Friday. The New York Post reported that Hendricks had just graduated from James Monroe High School a week before he was tragically killed.

🚨WANTED for HOMICIDE🚨
NAJHIM LUKE
22-year-old male
He is wanted for questioning in regard to the homicide of a 17-year-old on 6/28 in front of 1735 Davidson Avenue in the BronX.
Anyone with information in regard to his whereabouts please call or DM @NYPDTips 1-800-577-TIPS. pic.twitter.com/U4JvWimeF6

— NYPD NEWS (@NYPDnews) July 4, 2020

On June 28 just before midnight, police responded to a 911 call about a male who was shot in Morris Heights in the confines of the 46th Precinct. When cops arrived on Davis Avenue, they found Hendricks with a gunshot wound to his neck.

EMS personnel transported him to Saint Barnabas Hospital, where the teen was pronounced dead.

Police arrested Luke on the morning of July 6 and charged him with murder, manslaughter and criminal possession of a weapon.

Eve Hendricks, the teen’s mom, took to Facebook in a tribute to her “perfect son.”

“He was my perfect son and I am very VERY PROUD to be his mother and I would do it all over again and I’ll do anything for him,” she said in a Facebook post.

James Monroe High School head basketball coach Nigel Thompson posted a tribute to the rising star, calling him a “charismatic, humble young man” who “listened and respected everyone.”

“He [Hendricks] was an awesome team mate. Thoughtful, kind and caring. Full of life and positivity. I’ve never met anyone who had anything bad to say about him. He was a remarkable basketball player. Incredible handle and quickness. He was our leader on and off the floor for the past 2 seasons,” said Thompson.

In the tribute, Thompson said it was the community’s job to find the end to “senseless” violence and deaths and to also help “young brothers” value their lives and the lives of others.

Reports said that Hendricks was slated to play basketball at St. John’s University in Queens this fall.

This story first appeared on bxtimes.com.