Slain Harlem man Christopher Jimenez, 36, was gunned down by a teenage shooter due to a street beef among rival drug dealers feuding over territory, prosecutors allege in a newly unveiled criminal complaint.
A police officer with the 26th Precinct overheard Jimenez arguing with his 16-year-old killer — a drug dealer known for selling pot — and the teen’s 29-year-old accomplice, Angel Celpa, outside a W. 126th St. deli minutes before the fatal shooting around 5 p.m. on Apr. 17, court documents show.
“You can’t sell here,” Celpa allegedly shouted at the victim. “You know what time it is. Today is your day.”
Detectives reviewed surveillance footage that shows the teen killer, who wore a ski mask and whose name is being withheld due to his age, lift his shirt during the showdown and shove his hands into his waistbands to show Jimenez he was armed, prosecutors say.
“I will pop you,” the teen allegedly snarled.
Celpa and the teen then walk together to a W. 126th St. building near Broadway that’s part of the Manhattanville Houses complex with the victim in pursuit. Surveillance footage records another shouting match that erupts outside the development, prosecutors say.
At one point Celpa can be seen on video striking Jimenez — who appears to be armed with a knife — in the head and then repeatedly swinging at the victim as he staggers backwards, court documents show.
It’s as Celpa attacks that video shows the masked teen pull a firearm from his waistband and fire as Jimenez falls to the ground, said prosecutors.
The pair then flee into the building’s stairwell, but a wounded, knife-wielding Jimenez follows hot on their tails and another struggle ensues that ends as the victim succumbs to his wounds.
Celpa — who resided at the same Manhattanville Houses building as Jimenez — was arrested on April 23 and charged with three counts of criminal possession of a weapon and assault.
Surveillance footage from inside the building’s elevator recorded hours before the shooting shows the gunman unmasked, but wearing the same outfit as the killer, prosecutors say.
The teenager was busted with a handgun Tuesday when a school safety officer found the firearm in his blue backpack, a police source said. The school safety officer had received a tip that the teen was carrying a gun and checked his bag, according to the source.
Police arrested the teen around 4:20 p.m. at Philip Randolph High School — around the corner from the crime scene — and charged him with murder.
Originally Published: May 2, 2025 at 11:44 AM EDT
