A New York City teen accused in a University of Bridgeport shooting that wounded a teenage victim and prompted an hourslong campus lockdown earlier this year turned himself in on Friday, authorities in Connecticut said.
Dylan Cruz-Tillery, 18, of Queens, was charged with first-degree assault and carrying a pistol without a permit in connection with a shooting inside the university’s Marina Dining Hall on Oct. 29.
The incident led to “an immediate lockdown at the university with a large security and police response,” officials said. The lockdown lasted from around 6 p.m. until the following morning.
The male victim, whose identity hasn’t been released, was treated at an area hospital for a non-life-threatening gunshot wound to the arm.
The two young men, who knew each other but were not students at the school, reportedly got into a fight over a female.
“This was a targeted shooting where Cruz-Tillery was familiar with the victim and had prior communication with him via social media,” police said.
The shooting was “an example of young individuals’ ability to obtain firearms and their inability to de-escalate or diffuse situations,” Bridgeport Police Chief Roderick Porter said after the incident. “That’s something that we not only as a community here in Bridgeport but as a country, we need to work on our young people better on how to de-escalate and diffuse their situations.”
Cruz-Tillery was previously identified as a person of interest in the shooting. Earlier this week, Bridgeport Police Capt. Kevin Gilleran said investigators had secured a warrant for his arrest. His bond was set at $250,000
He’s expected to be arraigned in Bridgeport Superior Court later on Friday.