Flatbush Man Sentenced To 24 Years For Shooting Innocent 13-Year-Old In Eye

FLATBUSH – Acting Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez announced on Tuesday that a 24-year-old Flatbush man was sentenced to 24 years in prison for shooting a 13-year-old boy in the eye while attempting to shoot a rival.

Kareem Potomont was sentenced yesterday in Brooklyn Supreme Court to 24 years in prison following his conviction in August of first-degree assault, first-degree attempted assault, first-degree reckless endangerment, and second-degree criminal possession of a weapon.

Potomont was caught on video at approximately 11:55am on April 14, 2014, as he opened fire near Flatbush Avenue and Beverley Road. He hit his 24-year-old intended target in the leg. The 13-year-old victim, Gama Droiville, who was waiting for a bus with his aunt and cousin, was shot in his right eye by a stray bullet.

Potomont fled the scene but was arrested three days later in the basement of a house in Jamaica, Queens.

Droiville had to undergo multiple surgeries. He lost vision in his right eye and eventually had the eye removed. The older victim was treated for his wound and released.

“The young victim of this senseless shooting, who bravely endured multiple surgeries and lost an eye, will suffer the consequences of it for the rest of his life,” Acting District Attorney Gonzalez said in a statement. “Today’s sentence holds the defendant accountable and should serve as a warning that gun violence such as this will not be tolerated on the streets of Brooklyn.”