Crime & Safety
Shooting Victim at Whitman Houses Was From New Mexico: NYPD
Coral O'Brien, 26, was found dead on July 21. She had been shot multiple times, police said.
FORT GREENE, BROOKLYN — The previously unknown victim of a fatal shooting at the Whitman Houses last week has been identified as a resident of New Mexico.
Coral O'Brien, 26, was found early on the morning of July 21 at 56 North Oxford Walk, police said. She had been shot in the head, leg and arm, and was pronounced dead at the scene.
O'Brien was identified by police as a resident of Los Lunas, New Mexico, a village south of Albuquerque. An NYPD spokesperson said she was identified using a fingerprint database.
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No arrests had been made in the case as of Tuesday morning, police said.
Anyone with information on this shooting can confidentially report it via the NYPD’s Crime Stoppers website or by anonymously calling the Crime Stoppers hotline at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477).
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Los hispanohablantes pueden llamar 1-888-57-PISTA (74782).
Tips can also be text-messaged to the NYPD by texting 274637 (CRIMES), then entering TIP577.
On July 22, a group of elected officials and community activists held a press conference outside the Whitman Houses calling for a greater focus on preventing gun violence.
"That's somebody's daughter," said Ingersoll Houses tenant leader Anthony Sosa, referring to the then-unidentified O'Brien. "It's a travesty."
At the event, Fort Greene Councilwoman Laurie Cumbo also called for the quicker installation of security cameras at the complex, which is run by the New York City Housing Authority.
A NYCHA spokesperson said there are currently 11 security cameras operating in 3 of the complex's 15 buildings, with more installations to come.
O'Brien's shooting took place in the NYPD's 88th Precinct, which patrols Fort Greene, Clinton Hill and the Navy Yard.
According to official police statistics, through July 17 of this year, major crimes in the 88th had collectively fallen nearly 9 percent compared to the same period last year.
There were no murders recorded in the 88th through July 17, and one recorded shooting with one victim, compared to 12 shootings with 13 victims during the same period last year.
Pictured at top: 56 North Oxford Walk. Photo by John V. Santore
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