Mugshot of Marcos Gilbert, Jr. Photo: VIPD

The incident unfolded on the afternoon of Wednesday, July 9, when VIPD’s ShotSpotter system detected a high volume of gunfire in the vicinity of the JFK housing complex. As previously reported, responding officers from the Criminal Investigation Bureau discovered multiple spent shell casings and six vehicles that had been damaged by gunfire.

Near buildings 15 and 16 of the apartment complex, officers observed a Jeep Wrangler parked and appearing abandoned. The vehicle lacked a front license plate, had a tree branch stuck in its bumper, and suffered heavy damage to its front-right wheel well and a shattered rear window, according to court documents. Shell casings were found both on the ground around the Jeep and nestled along the base of the windshield.

Not far from the vehicle, officers recovered a black backpack and a small package. Inside the backpack were a passport belonging to Gilbert, a video game console, and an airline ticket dated July 8. The nearby package, addressed to Gilbert, contained ten magazines of varying capacities capable of holding a combined 381 rounds of ammunition.

More evidence found after additional searching 

A subsequent sweep of an abandoned building on the property yielded further evidence: the Jeep’s missing license plate, its key, a stack of clothing, two more magazines — one of which showed signs of recent use — a spent .40 caliber shell casing, a firearm laser/light attachment, and a bank receipt dated Wednesday, tied to Gilbert’s account.

According to police, the Jeep is registered to Gilbert’s father. When his mother was summoned to the scene, she confirmed the clothing as belonging to her son. She further stated that her husband had informed her the Jeep had been stolen earlier that day from a mechanic’s property.

Gilbert later agreed to meet with police. He reportedly told investigators that he had dropped the Jeep at a mechanic at 8:00 a.m. and remained home for the rest of the day. However, police say the mechanic gave a conflicting account, stating that the vehicle went missing after an oil change and was left outside for pickup.

In addition to the charges previously announced — including reckless endangerment in the first degree, carrying a firearm openly or concealed, evidence of intent to commit a crime of violence, and possession or sale of ammunition — Gilbert now faces charges related to unlawful possession of firearms, failure to declare firearm components, and the use of the stolen vehicle in connection to the incident.

He was booked and remanded to the John Bell Adult Correctional Facility after being unable to post the $30,000 bail. While Gilbert appeared before Magistrate Venetia Velazquez on Thursday morning for his Advice of Rights Hearing, no public record of the proceeding’s outcome had been made available at the time of publication.