An East Side Story : One of Bridgeport’s Worst Years 

  On October 30th, 2012, mischief night. A night usually associated with harmless pranks and teenagers  causing harmless trouble. The streets of Bridgeport would instead become the scene of another tragedy. 19-year-old Justin Nuazi  was walking with a friend near the intersection of Howlet and Shelton Streets when gunfire suddenly erupted.

Justin  was struck in the side and back, collapsing onto the pavement. As he fought for his life,  detectives desperately searched for answers. According to court testimony, Justin managed to utter just a few final  words. It was a red Durango. There were two guns. Moments later,  Justin died from his injuries at Bridgeport Hospital.

 At the time, few people realized  Justin’s murder was only one chapter in a much larger story. By the fall of  2012, Bridgeport was enduring one of its deadliest years in recent memory. Families  across the city were mourning the loss of loved ones. Teenagers were being buried. City leaders had even implemented a youth curfew in an effort to slow the violence.

 Yet, despite  those efforts, the bloodshed continued. What happened to Justin  Noallozi didn’t begin on Mischief Night. It began months earlier with another teenager, another family,  and another murder that many believe helped ignite a devastating chain of violence. Welcome to another episode of Street  Scene Diaries.

To understand Justin  Olo’s murder, we first have to understand what was happening in Bridgeport during the summer of 2012. The city was  experiencing one of its most violent years in recent memory. Violence had become an almost constant headline,  and with each passing week, another family was left mourning the loss of a loved one.

 Several  of the victims were teenagers or young adults, and fear had begun spreading throughout neighborhoods  across the city. Residents organized peace marches. Community leaders pleaded  for an end to the violence and city officials searched for ways to restore order. Following a  string of shootings involving young people, Bridgeport even implemented a youth curfew in an  effort to curb the bloodshed.

 But despite those efforts, the killings  continued. Then on the night of July 21st, 2012, 15-year-old Kaaja Noo Robinson had spent the  evening attending a Sweet 16 party with friends. Before the night was over,  a fight broke out, bringing the celebration to an abrupt end. As partygoers  left the venue, a group of teenagers gathered outside a home on Brook Street,  believing the night’s excitement was finally behind them.

 How you doing?  So, just before 2:00, shots rang out. Multiple people shot, possibly another, uh, person murdered, uh, shot to the head. On July 21st,  2012, after leaving a Sweet 16 party that had been disrupted by a fight, several teenagers gathered outside a home on Brook Street. Among  them was 15-year-old Kahiji Noo-Noo Robinson.

 As  the group sat and talked on the front porch, at least two gunmen approached and opened fire. Multiple rounds struck the home and the  teenagers gathered outside. Noo-Noo was shot in the head. Two other teenagers  were also struck but survived. Emergency crews rushed Noo-Noo to Bridgeport Hospital, but despite doctor’s  efforts, she later died from her injuries.

 Just days away from her 16th birthday, Noo-Noo became one of the youngest homicide victims in Bridgeport  that year. Bridgeport police immediately launched a homicide investigation, interviewing  witnesses and processing the scene for evidence. Detectives believe the shooting was targeted, but despite the investigation, no one has  ever been publicly charged with her murder.

 New’s death sent shock waves throughout the city. family members, friends, classmates, and  community leaders gathered to mourn another young life lost to gun violence. At the time, few people knew her murder would become one of the most talked  about unsolved homicides in Bridgeport’s history.  Noo-Noo’s death sent shock waves through Bridgeport.

 Friends,  classmates, and family members struggled to process the loss of the 15-year-old while grief spread  throughout neighborhoods across the city. As funeral arrangements were made and loved ones gathered to mourn, emotions  remained raw. In the days that followed, conversations about who was  responsible for Noo-Noo’s murder began circulating throughout the community and across social media.

 Although  investigators had not publicly identified a suspect, speculation spread quickly, adding  to an already tense atmosphere. At the time, long-standing rivalries between groups connected to different neighborhoods had  already created deep divisions. Noo-Noo’s killing only heightened those tensions, and as rumors continued to circulate,  fear, anger, and a desire for answers grew throughout the city.

 Bridgeport was now on edge. What began as the tragic  murder of a teenage girl had become something much larger. Before long, another act  of violence would leave yet another family mourning, pushing the city further into a cycle of retaliation that investigators  would later examine in court.    Well, shortly before 3:30  p.m.

this afternoon, we had received reports of shots fired here in the uh uh Halish Shelton Street area,  one of our officers arrived on scene and happened to fighting a young fella laying on the sidewalk bleeding profusely. Just 12 days after Ka and  I knew knew Robinson was killed. Bridgeport was once again shaken by gun violence.

 On the afternoon of August 2nd, 2012,  17-year-old Gary Gulip was walking on Howlet Street near Ogden Street when numerous gunshots were fired from a passing minivan. Gary was  struck and collapsed in the doorway of a home on Hall Street where he died. A second  teenage victim was shot in the leg, but survived.

 Gary’s death marked Bridgeport’s 15th  homicide of 2012 and the fourth homicide in less than two weeks. The killing intensified  growing concerns about the surge in violence affecting the city’s youth and came just  days after officials had adopted a city-wide youth curfew. Police quickly recovered the stolen minivan believed to have been  used in the shooting after it was abandoned at Green Homes.

 Investigators also  recovered shell casings from inside the vehicle that they said matched the type of ammunition used in the attack. Surveillance footage captured two individuals fleeing after the van was abandoned, providing detectives with important leads as the investigation moved forward. As detectives continued investigating the shooting, the case would eventually lead to the  arrest of Kyle Brody and Tyissson Anderson, bringing investigators one step closer to explaining what had happened on Howlet Street  that afternoon.

Despite the  arrest and Gary Gulp’s murder, the violence that had gripped Bridgeport throughout 2012 continued. On the night of October 30th,  2012, mischief night, 19-year-old Justin Nuallozi was walking  near the intersection of Howlet and Shelton Streets when a red Dodge Durango approached. Gunfire erupted.

Justin was struck  and collapsed in the street. As detectives rushed to his side, they asked if he could    identify those responsible. According to investigators, Justin replied, “It was a  red Durango. There were two guns.” He was rushed to Bridgeport Hospital where he later died from his injuries.

 Justin’s  statement immediately gave investigators a critical lead. Within a short time, Bridgeport police located and stopped a red Dodge Durango on  Central Avenue. According to court records, Roshan Robinson was driving the SUV while Cain Miner,  Joseph Humphrey, Call Brown, and Jaquan Williams were passengers.

 Detectives  recovered two handguns from the vehicle and took the occupants into custody as the investigation rapidly unfolded. As investigators  continued gathering witness statements, forensic evidence, and other evidence, prosecutors    ultimately charged the five men in connection with Justin Wallo’s murder.

The case  quickly became one of the most closely watched homicide prosecutions in Bridgeport, drawing packed courtrooms and intense public attention as the defendants  made their first court appearances. Just weeks after the arrest, all five defendants appeared  in Bridgeport Superior Court to face murder and conspiracy charges in the killing of Justin Newosi.

The case  drew enormous attention. More than 70 people packed the courtroom as  Joseph Humphrey, Khik Brown, Jaquan Williams, Roshan Robinson,  and Cain Miner were brought before a judge in handcuffs and leg shackles. Outside the courthouse,  tensions between rival groups boiled over, leading to a large fight  that required police intervention.

 As the case moved closer to trial, all five defendants eventually accepted  plea agreements rather than face a jury. Rashawn Robinson pleaded guilty to first-degree manslaughter with a firearm and conspiracy  to commit murder. Joseph Humphrey pleaded guilty to first-degree manslaughter with  a firearm.

 conspiracy to commit murder and possession of a pistol without a permit. Cain Miner and Kick Brown each pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit  murder. While Jaquan Williams later pleaded guilty to first-degree manslaughter with a firearm and conspiracy to commit murder. On April 11th and April 14th, 2014,  the defendants were sentenced.

 Rashawn Robinson received a 20-year prison sentence. Joseph  Humphrey also received a 20-year prison sentence. Jaquan Williams was sentenced to 20 years in prison. Cain Miner was  sentenced to 11 years. Kelly Brown received a 9-year prison sentence. During the sentencing hearing, Justin’s mother addressed the court.

 My son was senselessly murdered by a group of cowards. She then described the pain of watching her son die in her arms just steps  from their home. Although the convictions brought an end to the criminal prosecution, they did little to ease the pain left behind.  For Justin’s family, no prison sentence could replace the son they had lost.

While Justin Alo’s murder  case came to a close, the prosecution of Gary Gulp’s murder followed a different path. Kyle Brody ultimately  pleaded guilty under the offer doctrine to firstdegree manslaughter with a firearm, conspiracy  to commit murder, firstdegree assault, possession of a pistol without a permit,  attempted first-degree assault, seconddegree robbery, and sale of narcotics.

 Under the plea agreement, Brody  received a 25-year prison sentence, suspended after serving 20 years, followed by probation. Tyissson  Anderson’s case ended much differently. Although he was originally arrested and charged in connection with Gary Gulp’s murder, prosecutors  later resolved the case through a plea to reduce charges.

 In September 2016, Anderson pleaded guilty to secondderee robbery and interfering with police. He was  sentenced to 9 months in prison followed by 5 years of probation. With both homicide  prosecutions now concluded, the criminal cases had finally come to an end. For the  families of Ki John Ice, Noo-Noo Robinson, Gary Gulip, and Justin Wallozi, however,  the pain remained.

 Courtrooms could hand down sentences, but they could never restore the lives that had been lost.  Years later, the cases would return to the spotlight as several of the men convicted  in these crimes became eligible for parole. Once again, forcing the victim’s families to relive the tragedies that had changed their lives forever.

Great men  for years. I continued my reckless ways throughout my incarceration resulting in me having respect for anybody.  I’d like to moment  more than a decade after the murders of  Gary Gulp and Justin Luozi. The cases returned to public view, not through another trial, but through parole hearings.

 One by one, the men convicted  in these cases appear before the Connecticut Board of Pardons and parrolles, reflecting on the choices they had made, the years they had spent behind bars, and  why they believed they deserved another opportunity. For the victim’s families, however, the hearings represented something entirely different.

 My name is Mr. Prneig and I’m I’m Gary  Father. And that pain still lingers on. But all what that kid has said, all that is a bunch of bull.  They have got words to condes him to come to to come out in the public  after I take my son life. He don’t deserve to come out no time soon.  He deserve to do a few more years.

And it’s hard to live  without one child. Although you have a lot, it’s still hard. He lost his brothers. His brothers lost him. He has three sisters. He’s still he’s still missed by Hans’s cousins, friends. He’s still missed. So I don’t believe nothing come out of his mouth.  Um I understand everything  this young man has said, every program he went to.

  My thing is when you put an animal in a cage or you lock an animal  in an environment, they have to adjust to that environment. That’s what he  is. He’s an animal. He has adjusted. Okay. When you release that animal, they go  back to knowing what they know best. My son was 19. He had his whole life ahead of them.

Okay. My son was a mason. A mason. He took culinary arts,  HVAC, high school diploma, everything by the age of 19.    This young man chose to take my son’s life. Him and  every every him and everyone else that was in that car. Okay. They drove around that day looking for my son. My son was running away from  the car.

 He chose to shoot my He chose to shot him. He made the  choice to shoot my son. I don’t care what he accomplished in jail because if he wasn’t in jail when he had accomplished anything, no, he would be out  here ON THE STREET DOING THE same goddamn THING HE WAS DOING WHEN HE WAS OUT HERE. SO, NO, his ass need to SIT THERE BEHIND THEM BARS and serve  the rest of that damn time BECAUSE HE TOOK MY BABY.

I can’t get my baby back. My  baby was a popular high school student. I hate you. I can’t stand.  M Miss English,  I’m Miss English, I’m so sorry to interrupt you. Um I feel so bad, bro.  After hearing from both the offenders  and the victim’s families, the parole board ultimately granted parole to several of the men convicted in these cases.

 Joseph Humphrey’s  request for parole was initially denied. However, after returning before the board the following year, he too  was granted parole. One final development would once again bring one of the names from this documentary back into the headlines. After receiving a 9-month sentence in connection with the Gary Gulp case, Tyson Anderson was arrested  in an unrelated case in 2017.

In January 2019, he was sentenced to 20 years in prison for aggravated first-degree sexual assault. Today, the men parrolled in these cases have been given a second chance. What they choose to do with that opportunity is now entirely up to them. As for  K Jai, Noo-Noo Robinson, her murder remains unsolved.

 Rest in peace to Kijijana, Noo-Noo, Robinson, Gary  Gulip, and Justin Nuozi. They were sadly never afforded a second chance. This has been another episode of Street Scene Diaries. If you think stories like this deserve to be told, leave a comment below. And if you want more real  stories from real places, don’t forget to like and subscribe.