Family speaks out after 16-year-old stabbed one block from Bronx high school
The victim's family believes the attack was fueled by jealousy
BRONX, New York (WABC) -- What marks the moment a boy becomes a man? One Bronx father may never know the answer, as his son clings to life after being stabbed one block from his high school on Tuesday.
To his son's assailants, he said in Spanish, you became men the moment you stabbed my son, so be man enough to turn yourselves in.
Geilot Fermen's 16-year-old son was stabbed repeatedly in the stomach by five assailants, around the corner from the International School for Liberal Arts in the Kingsbridge Heights section of the Bronx.
Authorities say that five males ran away from the scene, leaving the victim for dead.
In an Eyewitness News exclusive, the victim's family shared video of NYPD officers reviving him as he was lying in the street.
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Community activist Awilda Cordero said, "They didn't stab him to stab him. They stabbed him to kill him."
The victim's family said that one of the assailants is the ex-boyfriend of the victim's girlfriend. They believe this attack was fueled by jealousy.
Fermen said he never wants to see another father go through the same thing. He has been by his son's bedside, telling him to hang on. But he has been sedated and unable to respond.
"It didn't take one. It took five of them to stab him," Cordero said. "Why? Why five of you? If you one of you had a problem with him, you deal with him. But why five of you?"
Fermen's son will undergo his fourth surgery at Jacobi Medical Center on Thursday. His family says doctors hope that after this surgery, he will be able to open his eyes, be alert and communicate.
Police are still looking for the five suspects in this case.
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