Crime
Rochester Police Arrest 18-Year-Old Michael Garcia in Connection with Double Shooting on Alphonse Street
On April 30, 2025, just after midnight, Rochester Police responded to a ShotSpotter activation and subsequent 911 call reporting gunfire in the area of Alphonse and Thomas Streets.
Upon arrival, officers located two gunshot victims: a man in his 30s and a 17-year-old female identified as Danyelisse.
The male victim was found on the front porch of 17 Alphonse Street, suffering from multiple gunshot wounds.
Inside the first floor of the residence, officers discovered the teenage girl with at least one gunshot wound to her upper body.
Both victims were transported by AMR to the University of Rochester Medical Center. While the man is expected to survive, the 17-year-old remains in critical, life-threatening condition.
Given the seriousness of the incident, the Rochester Police Departmentโs Major Crimes Section and Homicide Unit were immediately called to the scene.
Officers at the location obtained a description of a suspect vehicle believed to have fled the scene.
A county-wide BOLO (Be On the Lookout) was issued, and a Village of Brockport Police officer, recalling a recent encounter with a similar vehicle, located it parked near a residence on North Main Street in Brockport.
In collaboration with the Monroe County Sheriff’s Office, officers stopped several individuals leaving the apartment.
RPD detectives subsequently secured a search warrant for the residence, which was executed by the RPD SWAT team.
Several persons of interest were found inside, and investigators recovered evidence directly linked to the Alphonse Street shooting.
Following nearly 24 hours of continuous investigation, RPD charged 18-year-old Michael Garcia of Rochester with the following offenses:
- Attempted Murder (1 count)
- Assault in the First Degree (1 count)
- Criminal Possession of a Weapon in the Second Degree (2 counts)
Garcia was taken into custody at the Brockport residence and is scheduled to be arraigned in Rochester City Court on Thursday, May 1, 2025, at 9:30 a.m.
According to investigators, Garcia and several others went to the Alphonse Street residence to retaliate for a previous dispute involving one of Garciaโs associates and an individual linked to the household.
During the confrontation, Garcia allegedly shot the male victim outside the home.
The 17-year-old female, who was inside at the time, was struck by a stray round during the gunfire.
The investigation remains active, and detectives are evaluating potential charges against additional individuals involved.
Anyone with information or relevant video footage is encouraged to contact the Rochester Police Departmentโs Homicide Unit at 585-428-7157, Crime Stoppers at 585-423-9300, or email MajorCrimes@cityofrochester.gov.
The rapid arrest of Michael Garcia was the result of coordinated efforts among multiple law enforcement agencies, including the Village of Brockport Police Department, Monroe County Sheriffโs Office, RPD SWAT and Tactical Units, RPD Patrol Division, and the Major Crimes Section Homicide Unit.
Crime
Mustapha Kharbouch Now-Deleted 2024 Manifesto Published in Institute for Palestine Studies Recovered
Brown University has removed multiple online references to student activist Mustapha Kharbouch in the days following a deadly campus shooting, a move that has drawn public attention amid heightened online speculationโdespite law enforcement officials confirming that no suspects or persons of interest have been identified in the investigation.
Archived versions of Brown University webpages show that Kharbouch, a first-year student at the time, was previously listed in several university-affiliated roles, including as a student assistant and Cultural Programming Coordinator connected to the Global Brown Center.
His academic interests were described as focusing on International and Public Affairs and Anthropology, with involvement in Middle Eastโfocused academic, cultural, and student programming.
Those pages are no longer accessible, and Kharbouchโs social media accounts have also been deactivated.
A verified buyer from the United States with the name “Mustapha K.” reviewed a 9MM muzzle brake through the Wing Tactical website on December 29th, 2024 โ the same caliber used in the Brown shooting.
There are approximately a few hundred people in the entire United States with that first name + last initial combination.
University officials have not issued a public explanation for the removal of the online profiles.
The changes occurred as online speculation intensified in the immediate aftermath of the shooting, with social media users circulating screenshots of archived university pages and past writings associated with Kharbouch.
Among the materials resurfaced by online users was a 2024 essay authored by Kharbouch and published by the Institute for Palestine Studies as part of a special student essay series titled Genocide in Gaza: Student Essays โ Brown University Encampment 2024.
The essay, titled โI Hear the Voice of My Ancestors Calling: From the Camps to the Campus,โ was published on August 13, 2024, months before the shooting. The piece is a first-person reflective essay examining Palestinian identity, intergenerational memory, student activism, and questions of hope amid displacement, war, and protest.
The article includes poetic excerpts adapted from โAncestors Song,โ a chant popularized during student-led Palestine solidarity actions at Brown University, and documents Kharbouchโs participation in campus organizing efforts, including sit-ins, hunger strikes, rallies, and the Brown Gaza Solidarity Encampment.
The essay situates these experiences within a broader discussion of decolonial thought, feminist theory, and Palestinian history, including reflections on the 1948 Nakba and the authorโs family history as a third-generation stateless Palestinian refugee raised in Lebanon.
The content of the essay is ideological, autobiographical, and academic in nature.
There is no reference to violence on campus, nor any indication of intent or planning related to criminal activity.
The Institute for Palestine Studies has not issued any statement suggesting the piece is under review or connected to the shooting.
Despite widespread online conjecture, law enforcement agencies, including the FBI and Providence Police, have not named Mustapha Kharbouch as a suspect or person of interest, and have publicly stated that there is no evidence linking him to the shooting.
Investigators have emphasized that the case remains active and that conclusions are being guided strictly by verified evidence.
Authorities have cautioned against drawing inferences from online speculation, warning that unsubstantiated claims can compromise investigations and cause undue harm to individuals not implicated by facts.
Media analysts and campus observers have suggested that Brown Universityโs decision to remove online references may have been taken as a protective or precautionary measure, particularly as misinformation and harassment proliferated across social media platforms following the attack.
Similar actions have been taken by institutions in other high-profile incidents to limit doxxing, targeted harassment, or the misinterpretation of publicly available biographical information during periods of heightened tension.
Brown University has not confirmed whether the removals were temporary, administrative, or safety-related in nature.
Authorities continue to urge the public to rely on confirmed information released by law enforcement and to avoid amplifying unverified narratives.
As of the most recent update, no arrests have been announced, no individuals have been publicly identified as suspects, and the investigation remains ongoing.
Anyone with credible information related to the shooting has been asked to contact investigators directly.