19-year-old busted, charged with murder in Citi Bike slaying of 16-year-old Mahki Brown in Soho: sources

Joe Marino, Emily Crane
·3 min read
soho slaying
soho slaying

A 19-year-old was arrested and charged with murder Friday in the Citi Bike slaying of a 16-year-old boy outside a swanky Soho hotel, police sources said.

Henry Thomas, of Avenue D in the East Village, is one of two alleged perps cops have been hunting after Mahki Brown was gunned down opposite the Dominick Hotel on Spring Street on May 7, sources said.

Thomas was nabbed in Harlem early Friday by the US Marshals Service.

Dressed in a gray tracksuit, he said nothing as he was walked in handcuff by cops out of the 1st Precinct on his way to court at about 4:30 p.m. Friday.

According to a police report Thomas opened fire in the attack that killed Brown.

Mahki Brown was gunned down by a suspect on a bike on May 7.
Mahki Brown was gunned down by a suspect on a bike on May 7.
Henry Thomas, of Avenue D in the East Village, is one of two alleged perps cops have been hunting after Mahki Brown was gunned down opposite the Dominick Hotel on Spring Street on May 7, sources said. James Messerschmidt
Henry Thomas, of Avenue D in the East Village, is one of two alleged perps cops have been hunting after Mahki Brown was gunned down opposite the Dominick Hotel on Spring Street on May 7, sources said. James Messerschmidt

The victim was shot in the head and took two bullets to the leg in the brazen, broad-daylight attack last week.

Brown, an avid basketballer from Crown Heights, Brooklyn, was rushed to Bellevue Hospital, where he was pronounced dead.

“The USMS RFTF, SDNY Warrant Squad and the NYPD worked relentlessly to find the shooter of this senseless execution of a 16-year-old,” said Ralph Sozio, the US Marshal for the Southern District of New York.

The victim was shot in the head and leg, according to reports. Citizen App
The victim was shot in the head and leg, according to reports. Citizen App

“We are committed to use all of our collective law enforcement resources against anyone committing these acts of violence in our city and bring them to justice.”

The slain teen – who was a student at the nearby Broome Street Academy Charter High School – had been playing “peacemaker” in a fight between two of his female classmates before the shooting broke out, NYPD Chief of Detectives Joseph Kenny said last week.

One of the girls involved ended up calling her brother for help, Kenny added.

According to a police report Thomas opened fire in the attack that killed Brown. James Messerschmidt
According to a police report Thomas opened fire in the attack that killed Brown. James Messerschmidt

Two males then showed up on the Citi Bike – with one of them opening fire on a group of roughly 30 kids.

“He stepped in to break up the fight,” the chief said of the victim.

Brown, who was an avid basketballer from Crown Heights, Brooklyn, was rushed to Bellevue Hospital, where he was pronounced dead.

Brown’s classmates were witnesses to the fatal shooting. Stephen Yang
Brown’s classmates were witnesses to the fatal shooting. Stephen Yang

Brown, who was described by loved ones as caring and respectful, was with his girlfriend when he was shot.

“I was with him,” the distraught girlfriend told The Post in the aftermath.

“It’s hard. I just keep seeing him on the ground.”

Other witnesses reported seeing an injured Brown collapsing in an alley next to the hotel after getting hit.

“It was sickening,” said Justo Cruz, a security guard who works nearby.

“He was just laid down, looking unconscious. I saw some blood on the shirt but I didn’t look. Nothing nice. That was a human on the floor. That was movie-like.”