Brooklyn tot Davell Gardner died as a result of an ongoing turf war between two rival street gangs that were so bloodthirsty, they kept score on the numbers of bodies they racked up, authorities said Thursday.
Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez announced the takedown of 18 of the reputed gang members charged in a newly unsealed 63-count indictment, including Dashawn Austin, 25, who allegedly fired the shot that killed the tragic 1-year-old last summer.
“In July of last year, we were all horrified and outraged to see depictions of images of two gunmen shooting indiscriminately toward the park where people were having a barbecue,” Gonzalez said at a press conference Thursday.
“That image was seared into our minds. Four people were shot, three, as we learned, were wounded. But baby Davell Gardner, just 22 months old, lost his life.”
“We now know that those responsible for his death are members of a violent street gang called the Hoolies,” the DA said.
The 1-year-old was sitting in a stroller at a family cookout at the Raymond Bush Playground in Bedford-Stuyvesant on July 12, 2020, when he was gunned down in a drive-by shooting, according to police.
The toddler’s senseless death was part of the Hoolies’ war with the rival 900 gang.
“This important indictment of Hoolie gang members solves four murders and eight non-fatal shooting incidents,” Gonzalez said. “In total, we have 13 shooting victims, including a number of innocent bystanders.”
Austin, who sources said was already locked up in connection to a March 2020 murder in Brooklyn, pleaded not guilty to the fresh set of charges at a virtual arraignment Thursday afternoon. His next court date is June 30.
New details also emerged about the melee that left Davell dead: The gang used a three-car caravan to carry out the shooting, including a “chase car” that diverted police away from the alleged shooters.
According to the indictment, Austin, also known as “Capo,” “Doo Doo,” and “Hot Wheels,” got into the silver Audi sedan on Pulaski Street shortly before the 11:30 p.m. shooting that cost Davell his life.
His alleged accomplice, Akeem Artis, known as “Beans,” drove the duo to meet up with a white Jetta and a Mercedes-Benz in a coordinated attack, the indictment said.
Prosecutors said they drove to the cookout, where Austin “and another individual each exited the Audi and fired 9mm pistols numerous times, striking and killing Davell Gardner and shooting and injuring three additional individuals known to the grand jury.”
Davell was struck in the stomach — and the alleged gunmen then jumped into the Mercedes and sped off.
Austin and Artis are both charged in Davell’s death.
The little boy’s death sparked outrage in the Big Apple, which endured a summer filled with gun violence. New York City surpassed 1,000 shootings at the end of August — a milestone last topped in 2015, when 1,138 shootings were reported.
The NYPD offered a $20,000 reward for information leading to an arrest in Davell’s case.
Austin and other Hoolies were implicated in three other shootings.
The two men and other Hoolies were implicated in three other shootings.
“You are going to see the scope where this gang targeted and sometimes killed for sport,” NYPD Inspector Jason Savino told reporters. “In fact, we believe at one point they may have even kept a score against the opposing gang. Truly showing no remorse.”
“These incidents truly display that this gang and these subjects have no regard for anyone in the area,” Savino added. “These 18 individuals lived and terrorized our Brooklyn neighborhoods.”
The Hoolies, made up of members affiliated with branches of the Blood, Crips and Folk street gangs, is based at the Roosevelt Housing Development in Bed-Stuy and was embroiled in a turf war with the rival 900 gang, Gonzalez said.
The bloody feud stemmed in part from a December 2018 encounter where 900 members shot and killed a Hoolie gang member and wounded Artis — sparking retaliatory shootings that left one killed, one paralyzed and another wounded.
But the beef extended well into last year, including on March 3, when Austin and alleged Hoolies gang member Jayquan Lane also known as “Bo” and “Boshaun,” allegedly killed a rival, according to court papers.
The pair had shown up at the Kinanm Lounge on Atlantic Avenue after getting a text that the foe, Janille Whitted, was in the hotspot.
According to the indictment, Austin and Lane followed Whitted after he left the bar — then jumped out of their car and fatally shot him.
Austin was charged in that attack and has been cooling his heels in jail since July 16 — four days after the Davell shooting, sources said.
Two other Hoolies allegedly shot a member of the 900 gang three times in the head as he sat in his car outside a Brooklyn bodega, killing him, on Sept. 1, 2020.
