Zahir Davis was indicted by a Queens grand jury and arraigned Wednesday for the fatal shooting of 15-year-old Jaden Pierre at Roy Wilkins Park in St. Albans.
Photo by Dean Moses
A Queens grand jury indicted Zahir Davis for murder in the fatal shooting of 15-year-old Jaden Pierre in Roy Wilkins Park in St. Albans last month. Davis, 18, of Springfield Gardens, was arraigned May 20 in Queens Supreme Court on an indictment charging him with murder in the second degree, gang assault, and weapons possession, for shooting the South Richmond Hill teenager on April 16.
Davis was arrested by NYPD detectives assigned to the U.S. Marshal’s Regional Fugitive Task Force on April 24, as he arrived on a flight from Kingston, Jamaica, where he fled after gunning down the youngster in front of hundreds of teenagers.
A 16-year-old co-defendant from Brooklyn was arraigned on May 6 on indictment charges of attempted gang assault in the first degree and assault in the third degree.
The South Richmond Hill teenager was surrounded and attacked by a group of boys in the Nautilus Playground when Davis allegedly pulled out a gun and shot him in the chest, killing him.Photo via Facebook
According to the charges and investigation, at approximately 6:15 p.m. on April 16, Jaden Pierre was at the Nautilus Playground in Roy Wilkins Park with a large group of teenagers who had gathered for a water gun fight advertised on social media. During the gathering, a group of boys, including the 16-year-old from Brooklyn, attacked Pierre, punching and kicking him repeatedly. As the group of boys continued to surround the youngster, the Brooklyn defendant allegedly punched Pierre in the face.
Davis allegedly approached Pierre, pulled out a silver firearm from his backpack and shot him in the upper chest. Pierre fell to the ground as the crowd dispersed. Police from the 113th Precinct in Jamaica responded to a 911 call of a male shot in the vicinity of Merrick Boulevard and Baisley Boulevard, where they found Pierre on the ground, where he had collapsed. EMS rushed him to Jamaica Hospital Medical Center, where he was listed in critical condition before he succumbed to his injuries and was pronounced dead a short while later.
Davis, who is a iBG4 gang member, fled to Kingston, Jamaica, but returned to the U.S. on April 24 after relatives convinced him to come back to Queens after learning of the fatal shooting. The investigation into other participants in the gang assault remains ongoing.
“Jaden Pierre was beaten by other teens and then senselessly shot and killed in Roy Wilkins Park allegedly by 18-year-old Zahir Davis,” Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz said. “As alleged, Davis took out a gun from his backpack and killed the unarmed 15-year-old. The defendant was arraigned today on an indictment charging him with murder, gang assault and weapons possession.”
Detectives escort Zahir Davis, 18, out of the 113th Precinct stationhouse in Queens on April 25, 2026, following his arrest on murder charges in the fatal shooting of 15-year-old Jaden Pierre on April 16.Photo by Dean Moses
Davis was also arraigned on a separate criminal complaint charging him with two counts of aggravated harassment in the second degree and harassment in the second degree for allegedly threatening to shoot his ex-girlfriend, who is the mother of his child on April 12.
A woman who identified herself as Pierre’s cousin shouted profanities at Davis during his perp walk out of the 113th Precinct on April 24.Photo by Dean Moses
Following his May 20 arraignment, Queens Supreme Court Justice Kenneth Holder remanded Davis into custody without bail and ordered him to return to court on June 4. If convicted, Davis faces up to 25 years to life in prison.
“We are working every day to get guns out of the hands of teenagers,” Katz said. “The investigation into other aggressors remains active and ongoing.”