Police identify teen killed in Northeast Philadelphia shooting

Authorities on Tuesday identified the 15-year-old boy who was fatally shot Monday afternoon in the Crescentville section of Northeast Philadelphia.

Police said officers who responded to a report of a person with a gun just after noon discovered Neko Rivera with multiple gunshot wounds on the 6100 block of Algon Avenue, in the Philadelphia Housing Authority’s Oxford Village development.

He was taken to Einstein Medical Center, where he died just before 12:45 p.m., according to authorities. No one has been arrested in connection with the killing.

Investigators said Neko lived in the Norris Square neighborhood, and he was a ninth grader at Kensington High School.

“We are a small school, with close ties to one another, and the loss of one of our own is heartbreaking,” Principal José E. Lebrón wrote in a letter to families. “Death always brings sadness, but this is especially true when the life of someone so young is cut so unfairly short.”

“Gun violence is plaguing our city in epidemic proportions, and I know that this tragedy may call to mind other losses suffered,” he added.

Lebrón’s message said extra counselors would be on hand to speak with students and staff who need support.