On October 19, 2019, 11 month old infant Yaseem Jenkins was shot three times in the body and once in the head. The incident allegedly occurred when the toddler’s father, Nafes Monroe, brought him along to a drug deal. 

Investigators believe that Monroe made this decision due to his use of counterfeit money. By bringing Yaseem, Monroe hoped that the dealers would be less violent even if they had found out he had used counterfeit money. However, this did not prove successful. One of the people involved in the deal, Francisco Ortiz, fired shots at Monroe who then used Yaseem as a “shield” during the dealing.

Though Yaseem survived the shooting and “fought long and hard to recover from his injuries while still being the strong happy kid he was,” he, unfortunately, perished on April 19, 2022.

Monroe was arrested and charged with reckless and child endangerment. If Yaseem’s death is proven to be caused by the injuries, additional charges can be made against Monroe.

Yaseem’s aunt, Nadirah Jones, organized a GoFundMe fundraiser a day after his death to cover his funeral cost. After only three days, she has already managed to raise over $10,000 for the cause.

By Connor Ku