An 18-year-old reputed gang member is being held without bail after he was criminally charged with murder for allegedly firing multiple gunshots at a car, killing another teenager, outside a McDonald’s in Springfield Gardens on the night of Friday, Sept. 27.
Rayvon Philip, of 167th Street in Jamaica, was arraigned on Friday morning in Queens Criminal Court on charges of murder in the second degree and two counts of criminal possession of a weapon for the fatal shooting 0f 18-year-old Akim Cisse following an argument inside the fast-food restaurant.
According to the charges, between 10:15 and 10:20 p.m., video surveillance footage shows Philip outside the McDonald’s at 221-12 South Conduit Ave. in Springfield Gardens. A car is seen on video at the drive-through with four men inside the vehicle, including Cisse. As the car drove past, Philip allegedly pointed a handgun and shot at the vehicle approximately three times. Cisse, who was seated in the passenger seat, sustained a single gunshot to the back of the head.
He was transported by private means to Long Island Jewish Medical Center in Manhasset, where he was listed in critical condition. He lost brain function overnight and succumbed to his injuries the following morning. Detectives from the 105th Precinct in Queens Village arrested Philip at his residence near the Belt Parkway just after noon on Wednesday, Oct. 2. He was arraigned two days later.
“My office is committed to the prosecution and conviction of those who seek to unleash terror on our streets,” Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz said. “According to the charges, the defendant indiscriminately fired multiple times outside a fast-food restaurant in Springfield Gardens and killed an 18-year-old seated in a car.”
Queens Criminal Court Judge Edward Daniels remanded Philip into custody without bail and ordered him to return to court on Oct. 8. If convicted on the top count, Phillip faces up to 25 years to life in prison.
“This was a completely senseless act of gun violence,” Katz said. “And we will aggressively investigate and prosecute those that destabilize our communities.”
Cisse, who lived on 224th Street near Idlewild Park in Springfield Gardens just four blocks south of the scene of his murder, was a recent graduate of Transit Tech Career and Technical Education High School in the City Line section of Brooklyn, where he played for the Express basketball team.
“We’re saddened to announce the loss of a former student-athlete and high school graduate, Akim Cisse,” Transit Tech CTE H.S. said in a statement on social media. “Akim was a former JV and Varsity athlete for the Express who came to us in junior high school. He was a friend and brother to all. We express our deepest condolences to his family and friends. Akim is forever in our hearts. Ball in peace.”
