Watch CBS News

L.I. Man Released On Bail After Shooting, Killing Alleged Armed Intruder

HUNTINGTON STATION, N.Y. (CBSNewYork) -- The Long Island man charged with killing an intruder in his home was released on bail Thursday.

Youssef Abdel-Gawad was released on $25,000 bail. He must wear an ankle monitoring bracelet.

L.I. Man Released On Bail After Shooting, Killing Alleged Armed Intruder

Abdel-Gawad was charged with manslaughter in the incident on Aug. 21 of last year at his family's Huntington Station home. He said he was only trying to protect his family.

"For me the nightmare would have been if they would have gotten into the house to my brothers and my mom at the time," Abdel-Gawad told 1010 WINS.

Abdel-Gawad, his parents and two brothers hope surveillance video will clear his name, CBS 2's Jennifer McLogan reported last week.

He said his brothers feared for their lives, and he shot in self-defense.

Prosecutors said there's no proof the burglars fired their gun at all since no bullets were recovered, 1010 WINS' Eileen Lehpamer reported. Abdel-Gawad's family hopes the surveillance video will prove the prosecutors wrong.

"We presented them with the videos that show the gentlemen clearly inside the house shooting the gun, with the light and muzzle going off inches from my brother's face," Abdel-Gawad said. "He was within inches of killing my brother."

Police said as four accomplices waited in a backyard shed, another crept onto the porch holding a gun. The family said as the would-be robber tried to gain entrance, he suddenly fired the weapon toward the sliding glass door and a flash went off.

The Abdel-Gawad family said they were cowering inside. The three sons banded together – two picked up wooden sticks, and the third, Youssef, grabbed a shotgun.

The brothers chased the alleged burglars from the porch, and Youssef fired, striking a 33-year-old man from Roosevelt in the back. That man, Jazzmen Bryant, later died of his wounds.

The District Attorney's office said the man who died was shot in a neighbor's backyard as he ran away. A pellet gun was recovered from the group of alleged burglars.

"The DA's office indicated they didn't think it was necessarily clear that a shot was fired, but you can actually see a flash and see the gun pull back after he pulls the trigger," defense attorney Anthony Rutkowski said last week. "So we're pretty confident that when we have a chance to present our side to the story, that he will be acquitted."

Abdel-Gawad is enrolled at Suffolk Community College as a criminal justice major, and he recently passed the NYPD exam, according to his family.

The District Attorney's office said Abdel-Gawad has been arrested in the past on marijuana charges, driver's license suspensions, and fleeing the directive of a police officer.

You May Also Be Interested In These Stories

View CBS News In
CBS News App Open
Chrome Safari Continue
Be the first to know
Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting.