Justice was served this week to the second of two individuals involved in the May 2013 murder of a teenage girl who was hit by a stray bullet while riding a bus in South Jamaica.
Shamel Capers, 19, of Brooklyn was convicted on Wednesday, June 21, of second-degree murder and second-degree criminal possession of a weapon for his role in the death of D’aja (Asia) Robinson, 14.
According to Queens District Attorney Richard A. Brown, Robinson left a sweet sixteen party on the night of May 18, 2013 and boarded a Q6 bus at the corner of Sutphin and Rockaway boulevards. Capers and a second gunman — Kevin McClinton, then 21, of Rosedale — were outside the bus at the time.
Shortly after Robinson took her seat in the rear of the bus, police said, Capers pulled out a handgun and fired five shots at the vehicle. McClinton then grabbed the gun and pulled the trigger four more times. One of the bullets traveled through the bus window and hit Robinson in the head.
Officers from the 113th Precinct and EMS units rushed to the scene. Robinson was removed to a local hospital, where she died a short time later.
Through an investigation, McClinton was tracked down in South Carolina a month after the deadly shooting and extradited back to Queens to face charges. He was convicted last year of second-degree murder and later sentenced to 40 years to life in prison.
Brown said Capers, who was arrested in 2014, faces up to 15 to life behind bars when he is sentenced on July 19.
“D’aja Robinson was a talented young girl who did not deserve to have her life cut short by the senseless actions of the two defendants found guilty of her murder,” Brown said. “Hopefully, D’aja’s family can find some closure and solace in knowing that the persons responsible for taking her young life have now been held accountable and are no longer a threat to society.”
