Victim speaks out as manhunt continues for suspected gunman wanted in 2 deadly shootings
MELROSE, Bronx (WABC) -- The manhunt continues for the suspected gunman who killed two people days apart in New York City.
The first incident happened at a restaurant in Brooklyn where a worker was killed and the other happened at a bodega in the Bronx where a customer was fatally shot.
Another man, who was shot inside the Brooklyn restaurant, is recovering in the hospital and exclusively told Eyewitness News how he believes he tricked the gunman into not killing him.
Mohammed Rasel still has a bullet lodged in his thigh.
He is most concerned about how he will support his wife and a 12-month-old but is also concerned that the man who shot him and then opened fire in a different store in the Bronx two days later is still out there.
Police are looking for 31-year-old Jesus Acosta in connection with both crimes.
"Now I'm scared that he's going to come back again. Why is he not arrested? My life is not safe," Rasel said.
Rasel said Acosta stormed American Best Wings and Pizza in Brownsville last Sunday, shooting him in the leg and then shooting his friend and coworker MD Yousuf,44, in the head.
Yousuf was a father of two daughters -- 12 and 3 years old.
"He touched me he thinking I'm acting like I'm dying," Rasel said.
Rasel said he played dead as the gunman checked to see if he was still alive.
Acosta has 13 prior arrests, starting with an armed robbery when he was 14 years old. He served 10 years in state prison for shooting a man on a subway platform and was released on parole in April.
Acosta is accused of walking into 149 Grill in the Melrose section of the Bronx just after midnight on Tuesday. Surveillance video shows him pulling out a gun and shooting a customer, 33-year-old Tayvon Shuler.
The video then shows him go behind the counter to steal money from the register while customers and employees scrambled and tried to take cover.
Shuler, who was known as Plucky, died at the hospital.
On Wednesday, his father came to the deli to see the growing memorial for his son.
"He's a good kid, he would give the shirt of his back, he's going to me missed," Douglas Shuler said. "That's my youngest. His brothers aren't too fond of what happened...just got caught in the wrong place at the wrong time. But that's how the city is, he's going to be missed."
Mayor Zohran Mamdani was asked about the decision to release Acosta on parole.
"I think first and foremost, we know that when the NYPD makes something a top priority for them, it is something that they put every single resource that they have towards it," Mamdani said. "I'm confident in their abilities of being able to find him. What this speaks to is the importance of public safety. And to me, every day is an opportunity for us to do more."
Shuler said the suspect should turn himself in or the streets will get him.
In a news conference on Wednesday night, the United Bodegas of America said it is doubling its reward to $10,000 for information that leads to an arrest.
Also during the news conference, UBA Spokesman Fernando Mateo asked for the city to extend panic buttons and demanded that anyone caught with an illegal firearm serve a minimum of 3-5 years.
"We are advising every law-abiding bodega owner to apply for a pistol license. It's our constitutional right," Mateo said.
The FBI said it is offering a reward of up to $25,000 for information leading to the location and apprehension of Acosta.
Police say Acosta has distinctive tattoos, including "Bronx" tattooed on his hand and "Bobby" tattooed on his left forearm.
Anyone with information is asked to call NYPD Crime Stoppers.
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