2 arrested in Ahern Street shooting of 4 at graduation party; police seek second gunman

MANCHESTER, NH – Two men fired a total of 15 rounds from a pair of 9 mm handguns in a daylight shooting Saturday afternoon that injured four people attending a graduation party at Elmwood Gardens, according to court records.

While police have made two arrests, one of the gunmen remains at large.

Emmanuel Sayle, 21, of 169 Joliette St., 3N, is charged with four counts of reckless conduct and being a felon in possession of a firearm.  He also was detained on a 72-hour parole hold.

In 2021, Sayle was identified during a court hearing as being a member of the Nine Trey Gangster Bloods or Nine Trey Gangsta Bloods (NTG).  The hearing was in the case of Tariq Alston, who was charged with reckless conduct in connection with an April 7, 2021, shooting outside Seven Days Market, 360 Union St. where three people were shot.

Alston had been released on bail and a prosecutor wanted his bail revoked after he was seen at Shooters Outpost, handling firearms and in the company of Sayle and Milton Nabors, both identified as NTG members.  NTG  is a violent gang tied to the United Blood Nation street gang connected to the LA Bloods.  It was formed 30 years ago at the Rikers Island correctional facility in New York City.

Sayle waived arraignment Tuesday in Hillsborough County Superior Court Northern District.  He agreed to be held without bail, pending a further hearing.

Griffin O’Neil, 20, of 727 Mast Road, identified by police as the getaway driver, appeared in court on felony counts of criminal liability (accomplice) for the conduct of another and two counts of being a felon in possession of a deadly weapon.   He was ordered held in preventive detention.  He also was detained on a 72-hour hold for a parole violation.

Five days before the shooting, O’Neil was released from prison after serving a sentence on a riot charge from a brawl in August 2021 at the Red Arrow.

Assistant Hillsborough County Attorney Patrick Ives, in asking the court to order O’Neil held in preventive detention, said “within five days of his release, four people are shot here in Manchester.”  Children were at the party, Ives said.  O’Neil, he said, was “an incredible risk to the people of this city.”

According to court documents, two men, masked and dressed in black, opened fire at the partygoers Saturday at 4:50 p.m. outside 129 Ahern St.  The four people hit were identified only by their initials in court papers: SS, who was struck by a bullet that went through the left thigh and into the right thigh; KV, shot in the lower left leg, shattering the tibia; IC, suffered a shot to the inner thigh and a separated shoulder; and YN, shot in the chest.  Police said all are expected to recover.

Video footage from four locations helped investigators track the movement of the shooters and ultimately arrest Sayle and O’Neil. The first footage obtained was from the Manchester Housing and Redevelopment Authority of the Elmwood Gardens property.  At 4:47 p.m., cameras recorded a white Nissan Murano backing into the dumpster accessway off Brown Avenue, near where the shooting took place.

Soon after, two people get out of the car.  The first, identified as Suspect 1 in court papers, is a Black male wearing a black mask, black hooded sweater, gray sweatpants with writing under the left pocket. The end of a pistol magazine is sticking out of the front sweater pocket.  He is larger than the other man, identified as Suspect 2, and described as light-skinned, wearing a mask, black hooded sweater, black pants with a tear on the right knee and multi-colored sneakers.

The two walk behind 138 O’Malley St., to a grassy area east of that address and raise their arms, pointing in the direction of the party. They then run back to the Nissan, which drives away south on Brown Avenue.

Police obtained the car’s registration and determined it belonged to PP of 372 Amherst St.  O’Neil is PP’s son.

Detectives Andrew Choi and Max Rahill viewed camera footage from one of Families in Transition’s properties near 372 Amherst St.  At 4:25 p.m. on May 13, 2023 – 25 minutes before the shooting — an identical SUV arrives and parks at Derry and Chester streets.  The driver gets out and walks behind 372 Amherst St.  A passenger in the rear seat gets out as well, walks over to the trash can belonging to FIT and tosses a small white package into it.  The passenger, Choi writes in an affidavit, is Suspect 1 from the shooting.

The detectives check the trash can and find a Kentucky Fried Chicken container.  Later, they go to Kentucky Fried Chicken, where they view camera footage from the day of the shooting.  At 4:10 p.m., Suspect 1 entered the restaurant.  Several officers, detectives, and probation/parole officers identify him as Sayle.  Additional camera footage from someone who lives in the neighborhood of Derry and Chester streets recorded Sayle throwing away the KFC box.  Police, and other detectives, also were able to identify O’Neil as the person getting out of the driver’s seat and walking toward the rear of 372 Amherst St.

On Monday, two days after the shooting, Sayle and O’Neil were seen in the same Nissan Murano in the area of Elm Street and Queen City Avenue, where they were arrested.

When O’Neil spoke to detectives, he admitted to driving two people to Elmwood Gardens and parking in the area of the dumpsters.  He said two people got out, returned to the car and he then drove them to the area of Brown Mitchell Park where he dropped off one of them.

Defense Attorney Don Topham, in arguing for personal recognizance bail for O’Neil, said there is no evidence that supports charges of him being a felon in possession of a gun or that O’Neil knew what was going to occur.

Judge N. William Delker, however, said it was appropriate for O’Neil be held in preventive detention based on evidence presented on the accomplice to reckless conduct charge, his prior criminal history and the serious nature of the charges.