Cairo teen charged with felonies in Dutchess County shooting case
TIVOLI — A Cairo teenager is being held on felony charges in connection with the shooting Tuesday of a 20-year-old Red Hook man in Dutchess County, the Dutchess County Sheriff’s Office said Thursday.
The youth, whose age was given as 17, was charged with first-degree assault, first-degree robbery and second-degree criminal possession of a weapon, Lt. Shawn Castano of the Dutchess County Sheriff’s Office said.
The incident took place Tuesday night at approximately 8:36 p.m., when the Dutchess County Sheriff’s Office responded to a 911 call reporting a shooting on Clay Hill Road in Tivoli, the sheriff’s office said.
When deputies arrived at the scene, they found a 20-year-old man with a gunshot wound to the abdomen, the sheriff’s office said.
The man was taken by Tivoli Rescue and Northern Dutchess Paramedics to a local hospital, where he underwent surgery for serious injuries, according to the sheriff’s office.
The investigation extended into Columbia County and ultimately into Greene County, where Dutchess County sheriff’s detectives took the suspect into custody without incident.
Greene County Sheriff Peter Kusminsky said his department located a vehicle that matched a description from the Dutchess County Sheriff’s Office parked at a residence on Vedder Mountain Road in the town of Catskill. The Dutchess County Sheriff’s Office did the rest.
“We called them and the Dutchess County Sheriff’s Office drove up here and made the arrest themselves,” Kusminsky said. “All we did was assist them.”
The preliminary investigation indicated that the shooting was not a random act of violence, Castano said.
The teenager was arraigned before Judge Frank Mora in Poughkeepsie City Court and was sent to the Woodfield Secure Cottage in Valhalla in lieu of $150,000 bail, pending a future court appearance, the sheriff’s office said.
The criminal investigation is ongoing, Castano said, and due to the ages of the suspect and the victim, names are not being released at this time. A motive for the shooting is unclear at this time.
Police are urging anyone with information about the case to contact Detective Stephen Slattery at 845-486-3864 or call the sheriff’s office tipline at 845-605-CLUE (2583). All information will be kept confidential.
Agencies assisting the Dutchess County Sheriff’s Office with the investigation include Red Hook Police, City of Hudson Police, Greene County Sheriff’s Office, state police and the Dutchess County District Attorney’s Office.
