New Haven Independent

Ortiz spoke at the police department, just a short distance away from where Carlos Ortiz, 22 and Aaron McCrea, 27, were shot to death in two related shootings on Sunday.

Carlos Ortiz, of New Haven, was shot at 1 a.m. on Columbus Avenue near the Church Street South apartment complex. About 17 hours later, McCrea was shot to death outside the same complex.

Police described the second shooting as “retaliation” for the first. McCrea may have pulled the trigger in the first victim’s death: He’s being considered a “person of interest” in that investigation. The two men knew each other and have had at least one violent altercation before, said police. McCrea had been away from the city for a while — his last major arrest in the city was in 1998, for aggravated assault — then recently moved back.

Following a spike in youth violence this summer, this weekend’s victims are the 17th and 18th homicides this year. That’s a big increase over last year, when there were only 15 homicides the whole year. But Ortiz said these victims were different: “These were not random. The folks knew each other.”

He noted that, unlike younger shooting victims this summer, Carlos Ortiz had been recently caught with drugs. He was arrested six times this year, most recently on Sept. 8.

For the next week, cops will be stationed at the complex 24 hours a day. Ortiz said police are “very concerned” about retaliation. “For the rest of the week, during the wakes and the funerals, this department will have to create a wedge between those who might want to go out there and seek revenge.”

Though weekend violence prompted complaints about an unstaffed substation, Chief Ortiz said the complex — which houses 300 families and hires its own officers to supplement the police force — has a low rate of reported crime compared to both last year and other parts of the city. A recent survey showed residents felt the safest this year than they have in many years, said Ortiz. Until Sunday.

In response to weekend violence, police will meet with residents and complex’s management company, Community Builders, Tuesday at a meeting at 5 p.m. at the Church Street South community room. After the 3:30 p.m. press conference, police left with employees of the Child Study Center to search for and treat children who may have witnessed the crimes.