CROWN HEIGHTS, Brooklyn — A woman accused of shooting and killing another woman on a Crown Heights street in August was arrested on a murder charge Thursday in Brooklyn, nearly two weeks after she was apprehended by police in Florida, the NYPD said Friday.
PIX11 News obtained exclusive video of law enforcement escorting Claudia Banton through JFK Airport on Thursday.
According to police, Banton was officially arrested by the NYPD around 3:40 p.m. Thursday. She was arraigned Friday on charges of murder and criminal possession of a weapon.
Back on Nov. 8, NYPD Commissioner Dermot Shea announced that Banton, who also goes by the names Claudia Williams and Kiesha Brown, had been taken into police custody in Jacksonville, Florida.
Delia Johnson, 42, was fatally shot point blank by another woman on a crowded street in the vicinity of Franklin Avenue and Prospect Place around 9:40 p.m. on Aug. 4, according to police.
Authorities believe Banton to be the woman caught on shocking surveillance video getting out of a white vehicle, walking up to Johnson and immediately opening fire. The suspect is then seen getting back into the vehicle and driving off.
Responding officers found Johnson unresponsive with gunshot wounds to her leg and head, according to police. She was pronounced dead at the hospital shortly after.
Sources told PIX11 News that Banton immediately left the city and had been on the run in the months following the deadly shooting.
The news earlier this month that Johnson’s suspected killer had finally been apprehended brought the victim’s mother to tears.
The Brooklyn district attorney’s office said Banton was extradited to New York on Thursday.
“This was a cold-blooded execution of a woman who was a beloved mother, daughter, sister and friend, who did not deserve to have her life taken away from her,” said Brooklyn DA Eric Gonzalez. “The defendant has now been apprehended and we will seek to bring her to justice for this senseless and tragic killing.”
Banton was ordered held without bail and was expected to return to court on Jan. 26. She faces up to 25 years to life in prison if convicted of the top count.
Editor’s note: The suspect has been referred to using several names by different law enforcement organizations. This story has been edited to identify the suspect primarily as Claudia Banton, with references to her aliases.
Lauren Cook and Corey Crockett contributed.
