Buffalo Police arrests person of interest in connection to Zenner Street double homicide

Buffalo, N.Y. (WBEN) - Buffalo police have arrested a person of interest in a double homicide that took place on Zenner Street in Buffalo this weekend.

31-year-old Dale Cummings of no permanent address was arraigned Monday afternoon before Buffalo City Court Judge Samuel P. Davis, Jr. on one count of Criminal Possession of a Weapon in the Second Degree (Class "C" violent felony).

It is alleged that on Sunday, April 28 at approximately 6:17 p.m. ET, Buffalo Police found the defendant in possession of an illegal, loaded gun in the area of East Delavan and Norfolk Avenues. The weapon, what's described as a 9mm collapsible rifle, was submitted into evidence for further analysis.

Cummings is scheduled to return to court on Friday, May 3 at 9:30 a.m. ET for a felony hearing. He was held without bail.

If convicted of the charge, Cummings faces a maximum sentence of 15 years in prison.

The defendant is a person of interest in the investigation into a double homicide that occurred over the weekend in the city’s Genesee-Moselle neighborhood.

It was on Saturday, April 27 at approximately 12:30 p.m. ET, Buffalo Police responded to a reported shooting on the 100 block of Zenner Street. Two victims, a 59-year-old male and a 39-year-old male, were fatally injured by gunfire.

One victim was shot and killed on the front porch of the address, and the other in the street. The victim shot in the street was ultimately recovered by responding officers and transported him to the hospital, where he was pronounced dead.

Police were unable to get to the man on the porch until the incident had concluded, but they were able to determine he was already deceased.

The identities of the two men are Babul Meah and Abu Yousuf.

Buffalo Police Commissioner Joseph Gramaglia says they believed after the shooting had taken place, the person of interest barricaded himself inside the house, which allowed homicide detectives to canvass the area while officials worked to obtain a warrant for the property.

However, it was several hours later when police obtained video that appeared to show the individual connected with this double homicide having escaped immediately from the back of the house before officers were aware that house was where the subject went.

After obtaining the search warrant, investigators found numerous items that were able to aid in finding the individual in question. That included a receipt from a corner store where they obtained an clearer image that was sent out of the person in question.

"It was that image being sent out that, fortunately working with the community, there was a citizen that spotted an individual that they believed to be that subject of interest. They flagged down a police officer, a police car, and two patrol officers within 10 minutes of being flagged down, checking out the area, spotted the individual and took the individual into custody," said Commissioner Gramaglia on Monday.

The tense situation Saturday unfolded after the two workers showed up at the Zenner Street address to complete work to prepare the property for sale.

"I can tell you, these two men were innocent. They were there to work and perform maintenance functions on this home," said Buffalo Mayor Brown on Monday. "They could have been anyone going to this home. They could have been postal workers, they could have been cable people, they could have been with the gas company or the electric company. That is what we believe was the randomness of this shooting. The men that were killed don't appear to be targeted. It does not appear that they were at all known to the individual that shot them. And it appears that anyone that went to that door on that day could have been shot and killed in the same way that occurred with these gentlemen."

"There's no evidence to suggest this was a hate crime, or any other targeted crime, other than these two men doing work in the community, doing work for this property management company, going to prepare this house for sale when they were senselessly and viciously gunned down," Gramaglia echoed.

Gramaglia believes Cummings was a "squatter" at the property, and carried out the shootings. However, they have yet to charge him for anything related to the double homicide.

The Buffalo Police SWAT team was called to the scene to secure the address, while officers awaited a search warrant for the property. The Erie County Sheriff's Department SWAT team assisted along with support from the county's Air 1 helicopter.

An angry meeting concerning the murders was held Sunday at the Buffalo Muslim Center, where both Mayor Brown and Gramaglia spoke.

"These gentlemen are fathers in our community, one the father of two with a baby on the way. The other, the father of seven children. This has been a difficult weekend for our community, a very painful weekend for our community. The two men that were killed are members of Buffalo's Bengali community," Mayor Brown detailed.

"I thank the Buffalo Police Department for excellent police work. I thank the Buffalo Police Department for working non-stop on this very heinous crime. I thank the Buffalo Police Department for literally working around the clock. Today we are pleased to report that a person of interest has been arrested in connection with this double homicide."