Locals Mourn Gilbert Kelly, Well-Known Neighborhood Caretaker
Police asked for the community’s help at last night’s 88th Precinct Community Council meeting as they look for leads in the March 15 shooting death of Gilbert Kelly, 64, a well-known homeless man who took care of the block on Grand Avenue between Gates Avenue and Putnam Avenue.
88th Precinct Deputy Inspector Scott Henderson said police do not know why Kelly was targeted. Police are looking at footage from a NYPD video camera on the corner of Putnam Avenue and Grand Avenue in hopes of finding a witness or the murderer, Henderson said.
Cops responded to two 911 calls of a shot fired and found Kelly lying on Grand Avenue near Gates Avenue at 4:20 a.m. He died of injuries to his heart and lungs, according to the New York City Medical Examiner’s Office. There were no reports of a fight or shouting before the shot, Henderson said. Police also could not say if Kelly had been lying down or standing when he was shot, or what type of gun was used, Henderson said.
“A lot of people in the neighborhood knew him,” Henderson said. “We need information from the public.”
Kelly’s death, the first homicide in the 88th Precinct in 2014, has shocked block residents. Locals describe him as a kind, helpful man who cleaned stoops, shoveled snow and did odd jobs around the neighborhood. Kelly was profiled by The Local in 2011.
“He had his problems, but he gave back by cleaning up the block,” said block resident Meghan Kovelsky, who has lived on Grand Avenue with her husband, Damon, for eight years.
Kelly served six years in prison in the mid-90s on a felony drug conviction. After his release, he began taking care of the block, often while singing to himself.
“He was one of the first things we saw when we moved in, singing Motown and pushing his shopping cart,” Damon Kovelsky said.
“He would sing at night, cleaning. I miss his sweet, golden voice,” neighbor Margaret Davis, 84, said, whose family has lived on the block since 1940. She said she had known Kelly for 18 years. She said he took out her garbage and picked up her prescription medications at the pharmacy for her.
“I knew something was wrong when he didn’t come see me,” Davis said. “He was truly a gentleman, he helped everybody on the block.”
A neighbor said that a memorial service will be held on the block on Friday at 7 p.m., though the family could not be reached to confirm.
Zayid Muhammed, a clerk at Putnam Deli Grocery on the corner of Putnam Avenue and Grand Avenue, said he heard the shot on Saturday morning from his apartment a block away.
“He was a good man, who would hurt him?” Muhammed said. He said he saw Kelly every day when he came in for a coffee or a sandwich.
“I miss him, seriously.”
Anyone who has information about the shooting is encouraged to call NYPD Crime Stoppers at (800) 577-TIPS (8477), submit tips online or text tips to 274637 (CRIMES) and enter TIP577. Those with information can also call the 88th Precinct’s Detective Squad at (718) 636-6547.