A loving father of 13 children who saved his family from a house fire sparked by their landlord was killed outside a Brooklyn brownstone early Sunday morning in what appeared to be a deliberate attack.
According to neighbors and police, a group of gunmen who were “waiting for him” ambushed and fatally shot 40-year-old Lavel Fraiser, also known as “Flip,” in the torso.
Fraiser was discovered in the backyard of a building at 673 Sterling Place shortly after 1 a.m., police said.
“He was shot outdoors in front. He staggered all the way to the back. “He was hiding back there,” the building’s superintendent, John Williams, 49, told The Post.
“I’m not sure what the beef was.” He was a nice person.”
Williams, who said he had known Flip for about seven years, watched him being carried away on a stretcher by EMS and urged him, “Please live!”
“The snipers waited for him. “They arrived in a car here in front,” Williams explained. “Everyone knows Flip. “He’s a good guy.”
Fraiser’s wife, Andriana, 28, described him as a “superhero” father to their 13 children, four of whom they share.
His wife recalled how he valiantly rescued their family from their former flat when the owner allegedly set fire to the building over one tenant’s unpaid rent.
“He saved my and my children’s lives. “We were in a house fire last September,” she explained. “He saved all of us, me and my six children.”
She continued, “He was a good man. He was quite humble. He was a vibe. He owned his own business.” He was very smart.”
According to his neighbors, Fraiser was not a troublemaker. According to Williams, he “always” maintained peace.
Fraiser died at the hospital, according to police.
Christopher McCarthy, 46, who lives down the street, said he was a friend of the victim and contacted 911.
“He was at the back. Outside at the back. He sat on the ground. McCarthy told The Post, “He was shot.” “So I said, Flip, are you OK, and he said nothing.”
“Then another friend began yelling, ‘Call 911, come on, call 911!'” “So I called,” he explained.
McCarthy, who has lived on Sterling Place for the past 24 years, said he was asleep when his friend was shot.
“I came out to grab a bottle of water. And I just saw Flip. I’m not sure what happened. “I saw him earlier in the day, and he was fine,” McCarthy said.
Another neighbor, who wanted not to be identified, said he heard four rounds fired at the time of the shooting.
“He is a good guy. Flip is a good man. I can’t believe what occurred.” I’m shocked,” McCarthy remarked, noting that he, Fraiser, and other neighbors would always hang out in the backyard.
Fraiser arrived in New York from Panama and had “no problems” with anyone, according to McCarthy.
No arrests have been made at this time, and the investigation is still underway.
