GASTONIA, N.C. — A makeshift memorial is now set up to honor a young man gunned down in New York last month, but his mother told Channel 9’s Ken Lemon this never should have happened.
Jesse Pimental’s mother told Channel 9 that police said her son wasn’t the intended target in a shooting last month in Staten Island. The suspect was caught weeks later after a standoff in Gastonia, but Pimental’s mother will have to wait another two weeks to learn if he’ll willingly return to New York to face charges.
Stephanie Urbonas spoke with Ken Lemon from her home in Manhattan, her grief spanning the miles between them.
“I don’t know how I’m going to go through life without him, ‘cause right now I just feel empty,” Urbonas said.
Pimental was shot on March 28 as he left a store with friends. Urbonas said police told her the shooter took aim at one of his friends and fired six shots. The last bullet hit and killed Pimental, who was just 25 years old.
“He didn’t deserve to die,” Urbonas said.
Last week, SWAT and US Marshals went to a home on Barkley Street and arrested Lydell Felton, who’s reportedly from The Bronx.
Neighbors said Felton often stayed in that home.
“I felt relief that my son will get the justice he deserves in his death,” Urbonas said.
She must now wait for May 8. That’s when Felton faces a judge again to decide if he will willingly go back to New York or be forced back through a series of court proceedings.
“Just going to sit and pray that he does waive his extradition so we can start the court process,” Urbonas said.
She said she needs justice, but she’s still struggling to find peace.
“I can’t even accept that he’s gone yet. I can’t,” Urbonas said.
The day of the shooting was the last day of Jesse Pimental’s probation for a weapons conviction. His mother said he was looking forward to removing the ankle monitor and starting a new life.
He died before that could happen.
(VIDEO: ‘My son is gone’: Mom wants son’s body returned to New York after Charlotte crash
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