Rob Frehse : “Teen Times Square Shooting Suspect Charged as Adult, Labeled ‘Extreme Flight Risk'”

(CNN) — A 15-year-old boy, identified as a Venezuelan migrant who entered the United States last September, has been taken into custody and charged as an adult after he allegedly shot and injured a Brazilian tourist at a store in Times Square. The New York Police Department announced that the teen faces multiple charges, including attempted second-degree murder, first-degree assault, criminal possession of a weapon, and assault.

Following leads connecting the suspect’s family to the Yonkers area, New York City detectives and US Marshals successfully apprehended the teenager on Friday.

The incident occurred at the JD Sports sneaker store. Video evidence obtained by CNN shows that the altercation began when a security guard approached the suspect and asked him to provide a receipt for a jacket he had in his bag.

According to authorities, when the security guard attempted to retrieve the bag, the suspect reached into his coat, pulled out a firearm, and fired a shot. Unfortunately, the bullet struck a 37-year-old woman who was visiting New York from Brazil.

The suspect then led law enforcement officers on a half-mile foot chase through Times Square, during which he fired two more shots at a pursuing officer. The officer did not return fire due to the densely populated streets.

NYPD’s Chief of Patrol John Chell commended the officers for their restraint, stating, “Our cops showed great restraint not to fire their weapon into crowded New Yorkers.”

This incident occurred just one block away from where police had previously encountered a group of men from a migrant shelter on January 27, resulting in a violent altercation. CNN reported that nearly a dozen men assaulted two officers as they attempted to arrest one of them.

During a news conference on Friday, NYPD Police Commissioner Edward Caban described the shooting as “way beyond reckless.”

Caban emphasized, “In the middle of the busiest, most highly-trafficked part of this city, a criminal with a firearm decided to pull the trigger.”

He warned, “If you think you can attack a member of this department, if you think you can threaten the lives of the very people who keep us safe, if you think you can put others at deadly risk and get away with it, then think again.”

During the teenager’s arraignment, Manhattan Assistant District Attorney Kathleen Coulson requested remand, citing the defendant’s extreme flight risk and the serious nature of the charges. Coulson stated, “The defendant has demonstrated that he is an extreme flight risk and is facing a long sentence of incarceration on this strong case, where he shot an innocent bystander in Times Square and then fired at the police officer who was trying to arrest him.”

Authorities suspect that the teenager was also involved in two other incidents in New York City last month, including a gunpoint robbery in the Bronx and discharging a firearm on 45th Street and Broadway, according to Chief of Patrol John Chell.

CNN has attempted to contact the teen’s attorney for a comment, but no response has been received thus far. The teenager is scheduled to appear in court again on February 13.

CNN’s Sabrina Shulman and Ashley R. Williams contributed to this report.