This Bushwick, Brooklyn neighborhood is still in shock over the fatal stabbing of 18-year-old Renato Scantlebury, the son of a police officer whose future seemed so bright.
"When I heard his name I ran up the block and when I seen the ambulance and seen him inside the ambulance, I couldn't believe it. My feelings are really hurt, I started crying....because I love him," friend Dariel Curtis said.
Friends of Renato Scantlebury are devastated by his murder. The aspiring rapper had made a CD of his songs that could be heard on his MySpace page.
Known as "Young Nato," he was visiting a friend at 1160 Gates Avenue around 6:00 p.m., when an argument with two men turned violent. Dariel Curtis was down the street when the incident happened.
"He just told the person something and the person said, 'what'...they fought, he fought two people. He won the battle, they said, 'I'll be back,'...They came back, they fought him again and then they stabbed him in his stomach," Dariel Curtis said.
Bleeding on the steps, another friend held him as he died. Scantlebury was rushed to Woodhull Hospital -- but doctors say he was dead on arrival.
Family members say Scantlebury was an aspiring performer and about to attend the School of Music and Art to pursue his dream.
"We rapped together, we did our thing together...we did our thing in the backyard right here down the block and I am hurt to see him just die where we chill at," said friend Carlos Young.
Police watched over the scene today while candles burned in his memory.
Renato's mother is officer Lisa Wade who works in recruitment for the NYPD. They live just a few blocks away from where the fatal stabbing took place.
Scantlebury had a one-year-old daughter. His friends say he focused on non-violent lyrics and worked at Chucky Cheese and doted on his one-year-old daughter.
So far, all police know is that there were two men scene running from the scene. No arrests have been made.
