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'I'm very angry but I don't hate you': Brooklyn mom tells female assassin who gunned down her daughter in a brazen execution-style shooting in NYC she will 'continue to pray' for her

A Brooklyn mother whose daughter was gunned down in brazen execution-style shooting in the middle of the street has told the killer 'very angry' but 'doesn't hate' her.  

Delia Berry's daughter, Delia Johnson, 42, was killed when a female shooter got out of her car with a gun behind her back, casually walked up to her and shot her in the back of the head from point-blank range on August 4. 

After a candlelight vigil on Friday, Berry looked directly into the camera during an interview with Bronx News 12 and spoke to her daughter's killer. 

'Very angry, and no, young lady, I don't hate you,' she said. 'I'm going to continue to pray for you and your family.' 

The family set up a GoFundMe to raise money for Johnson's funeral.  

The incident was caught on surveillance tape and shared by NYPD Crime Stoppers. The NYPD told DailyMail.com Saturday afternoon that there was still no arrest but there's a person of interest. 

There a motive is still unknown at this point.  

Scroll down for video. 

Delia Berry says she's 'very angry' but 'doesn't hate' the woman who fatally shot her daughter - Delia Johnson - in an execution-style shooting and will 'continue to pray' for her and her family

Delia Berry says she's 'very angry' but 'doesn't hate' the woman who fatally shot her daughter - Delia Johnson - in an execution-style shooting and will 'continue to pray' for her and her family

Shocking video shows the female assassin raising a gun to a woman on a Brooklyn sidewalk and shooting her dead. The victim, named by police as Delia Johnson, 42, was speaking to a group on a stoop in Crown Heights, Brooklyn, when she was shot in the head

Shocking video shows the female assassin raising a gun to a woman on a Brooklyn sidewalk and shooting her dead. The victim, named by police as Delia Johnson, 42, was speaking to a group on a stoop in Crown Heights, Brooklyn, when she was shot in the head

NYPD  issued this image of the female shooter, describing her as 'a dark-skinned adult female, approximately in her mid 20's, heavy build, long blond hair and was last seen wearing black long sleeve shirt, black tights, silver belt around her waist, black and white sneakers, white purse'It is unknown why she targeted Delia Johnson (pictured)

NYPD  issued this image of the female shooter, left, whom Delia Johnson's family members have now identified as a 'family friend.' It remains unclear why she shot and killed Johnson

The victim's family says they believe they know Johnson's assassin as a 'family friend' and the 42-year-old mom of a teenager was lured to her death by a phone call.  

'I know her,' Berry said when she saw the picture, according to the New York Post. 

'Oh my God, oh my God, she used to stay with us,' Berry said. 'She slept in my bed, ate my food.'

'She was one of my babies too,' Berry also told PIX 11 news. 

Johnson was talking to a group of people in Crown Heights at around 9.40pm on August 4 when a blonde woman dressed in all black walked up to her from behind and shot her in the back of the head. 

Johnson is seen on the video collapsing to the ground in front of horrified onlookers as her killer calmly makes her way toward a parked white car, gets in the driver's seat and takes off from the scene. 

One of Johnson's younger sisters, Hadjah Pendley, called the suspect 'a family friend who came to our family events, celebrations, holidays - whatever you want to call it, she came.'

Berry reportedly noted to PIX 11 that the suspect and Johnson had a tumultuous friendship in recent weeks in which they would 'argue about everything.'

She now says she wants to know why the suspect, who has not yet been named, would murder her daughter.

'Why did you slaughter her like that?' she asked. 'I just want to know why.

'What could she have done to you that you couldn't come and knock on my door and tell me? I would have straightened it out for both of you all.

'You are hurting families,' Berry told the Post. 'I'm in so much pain, I don't know what to do.

'She was my baby,' Berry said, adding: 'This person that shot my daughter, may God have mercy on your family, because we put curses on ourselves when we do things.' 

Delia Johnson, 42, was shot and killed on a Brooklyn street after attending a funeral for a friendShe was raising a 17-year-old daughter as a single mom

Delia Johnson, 42 (left and right), was shot and killed on a Brooklyn street after attending a funeral for a friend. She was raising a 17-year-old daughter as a single mom

Footage shows the assassin, her purse slung over her shoulder, turn and casually walk to an SUV as her victim lays dead on the sidewalk.

Footage shows the assassin, her purse slung over her shoulder, turn and casually walk to an SUV as her victim lays dead on the sidewalk. 

Delia Johnson lays dead on the sidewalk after onlookers scattered for shelter when the shots were fired.  Her assassin is shown getting into a getaway car

Delia Johnson lays dead on the sidewalk after onlookers scattered for shelter when the shots were fired.  Her assassin is shown getting into a getaway car 

After shooting Johnson multiple times, the blonde suspect calmly returned to a parked car

After shooting Johnson multiple times, the blonde suspect calmly returned to a parked car

She was last seen getting into the driver's seat and speeding away from the scene

She was last seen getting into the driver's seat and speeding away from the scene

Mathis Johnson, Delia's brother, told the New York Daily News that his sister had attended a funeral for an old friend earlier that day.

The service drew hundreds of mourners, and Mathis claims the suspected killer was among them.

Mathis said he saw the black-clad woman with long blonde hair at the Sealy Culyer Funeral Home, about four blocks away.

Johnson was reportedly talking to some friends afterwards when she received a phone call.

'She said 'I'll be right back,'' longtime friend Shawn Johnson, 43, told the New York Post. 'Twenty minutes later, somebody called me andtold me she got shot. I told him he was lying. I was just standing here with her.' 

Another of Johnson's sister, Khadyah Berry, 28, told the Post she was looking for a parking space when she saw an ambulance passing that night, not realizing it was for her sister.

'I ran down the street trying to get to her, but by the time I got to her, they took her,' Khadyah recounted, claiming she 'knew in my heart that somebody called her and knew what it was and set my sister up. Nobody can tell me otherwise.

'My sister didn't deserve that all,' she said. 

Delia's family members said she was an entrepreneur who was raising her 17-year-old. Her mother also described her as her first-born child who excelled in piano and tap dancing, and later took care of her as she became ill.

'I will never forget when I was in so much pain and she was right there for me,' Berry recalled to the Post about a surgery she underwent, and how Johnson was the first one at the hospital to help her.

'I am going to miss her bringing me some food when I wasn't feeling well,' she said, adding: 'When a child can wash and clean their own mother, that's love.

'She'd say 'You know you get my nerves sometimes, Mommy, but you know I love you,'' Berry told the Post. 'I'd say, 'You get on my nerves too, but I love you too.'

Delia Berry, Johnson's mother, said she now wants to know why the suspect killed her daughter

Delia Berry, Johnson's mother, said she now wants to know why the suspect killed her daughter

Berry, left, said Johnson, right, her first-born child, helped take care of her after she underwent surgery and would bring her food

Berry, left, said Johnson, right, her first-born child, helped take care of her after she underwent surgery and would bring her food


This is not the only instance of a woman being implicated in a deadly shooting targeting another woman in New York City. 

Back in April, 51-year-old Nichelle Thomas was fatally shot in the back of the head from a point-blank range as she approached a bodega in the Park Slope section of Brooklyn. 

Police later arrested Thomas' on-again, off-again girlfriend, 38-year-old Latisha Bell, charging her with second-degree murder.    

Wednesday's violent killing took place as Mayor Bill de Blasio proudly boasted on Thursday that his 'Safe Summer' program has driven down murder and gun attacks in New York City.

 In April, de Blasio unveiled his 'Safe Summer' program, a plan aimed at ending gun violence that focused on creating disincentives for young people looking to turn to guns by offering them positive alternatives.   

During his Thursday briefing, de Blasio proudly proclaimed that the program has been effective and said in the month of July the NYPD saw 'extraordinary successes' to curve violent crime.  

Listing statistics from July, de Blasio noted that murders decreased by 49.1 percent and shootings were down by 35 percent across the New York City. 

The NYPD made 383 gun arrests in July alone, up 133.5 percent compared to last July, the mayor said, while gun arrests in general have gone up 44.5 percent in 2021.

While de Blasio touted the success of his program he failed to mention an ongoing string of violent incidents in the streets of the Big Apple this summer that have led to the NYPD issuing hundreds of pleas to identify suspects.  

During his daily briefing on Thursday, de Blasio proudly proclaimed that the 'Safe Summer' program has been effective and said in July the NYPD curved violent crime

During his daily briefing on Thursday, de Blasio proudly proclaimed that the 'Safe Summer' program has been effective and said in July the NYPD curved violent crime

Shootings so far this year have steadily increased since January, with a small dip in June and July

Shootings so far this year have steadily increased since January, with a small dip in June and July

Rapes in New York City were up 3.1 percent so far this year, with 842 reported as of August 1, compared to 817 in the same period of 2020

Rapes in New York City were up 3.1 percent so far this year, with 842 reported as of August 1, compared to 817 in the same period of 2020

According to the mayor, the summer month of July is usually one of the most violent in the city but the NYPD 'rose to the challenge' and was able to suppress gun violence and executed an impressive number of gang takedowns. 

'The gang takedowns mean taking a lot of bad guys off of the streets and at the same time a lot of shooters off the streets, this is crucial,' de Blasio noted.

Overall since the safe summer program was launched in May, murders have gone down 26 percent, shootings decreased 10 percent and shooting victims are down 11 percent.

'There is more to do, but the NYPD is moving and making an impact,' de Blasio said.  

The stoop on 697 Franklin Street in Crown Heights where Delia Johnson, 42, was talking to a group of people before a female assassin opened fire on her

The stoop on 697 Franklin Street in Crown Heights where Delia Johnson, 42, was talking to a group of people before a female assassin opened fire on her 

A small row of candles marks the scene where Delia Johnson was gunned down on Franklin Street in Crown Heights

A small row of candles marks the scene where Delia Johnson was gunned down on Franklin Street in Crown Heights

While de Blasio took his victory lap many New Yorkers are wondering if the program is actually working as the city is inundated with violent crime. 

On Tuesday a man strangled a woman unconscious on a Manhattan subway train and attempted to rape her before taking off. 

According to the NYPD, the 40-year-old female subway rider was approached by a stranger who demanded her possessions and then slammed her into the train car seats.  

The burly perpetrator then strangled the victim until she lost consciousness.

Police said the assailant then groped the unresponsive woman's breasts inside her bra and tried to rape her, reported the New York Post.

When the train pulled into the 168th Street station, the attacker dragged the woman onto the subway platform and ran away. 

Crime has rocketed by 53% in two years and system has already seen more murders in 2021 than it did for the whole of 2019

Crime has rocketed by 53% in two years and system has already seen more murders in 2021 than it did for the whole of 2019

This comes one day after police released surveillance footage of a masked attacker they say raped a 70-year-old woman at gunpoint in her apartment building in The Bronx last week.

According to the NYPD, the sexual assault took place at around 2am on July 27 in the Belmont neighborhood.

The elderly victim was entering her apartment building when she was approached from behind by a man wearing two plastic masks - a red one and a black one - on his face, police said.

On Saturday, three innocent bystanders were struck when gunfire erupted outside a Washington Heights bodega.   

Surveillance footage showed three men chasing a fourth man into a bodega as he  goes behind the counter and holds a gun to the three men with his back to the cashier. 

Shortly after the group of men took the standoff outside and began firing, striking a 42-year-old woman in the left arm, a 58-year-old woman in the buttocks and a 78-year-old man in the left arm and stomach, the New York Post reported. 

Police say the man was wearing black and red plastic masks (pictured in his right hand) when he raped the elderly woman at gunpoint in the stairwell

Police say the man was wearing black and red plastic masks (pictured in his right hand) when he raped the elderly woman at gunpoint in the stairwell 

On Saturday, three innocent bystanders were struck when gunfire erupted outside a Washington Heights bodega

On Saturday, three innocent bystanders were struck when gunfire erupted outside a Washington Heights bodega

The men were gang members targeting rivals from the Trinitarios gang during the shooting on Saturday night in the borough's Corona neighborhood, police said

The men were gang members targeting rivals from the Trinitarios gang during the shooting on Saturday night in the borough's Corona neighborhood, police said

Earlier this week, surveillance footage captured the moment two men approached a crowd in a busy Queens neighborhood and fired about 40 shots, injuring 10 people before fleeing the scene on mopeds.

The shooters were targeting members of the Trinitarios gang on Saturday night in the borough's Corona neighborhood, police said.

They opened fire while some bystanders were walking outside a barbershop and others were at a nearby restaurant for a birthday party.

These incident are reflective of the overall skyrocketing crime rates in New York City. 

NYPD crime data show that rapes are up 3.1 per cent so far this year, with 842 reported as of August 1, compared to 817 in the same period of 2020.

Other sex crimes are up 26.3 per cent to 2,719 this year, compared to 2,152 last year, according to NYPD statistics.

Shootings have spiked 15.8 per cent in 2021 compared to last year, with 900 shooting incidents in 2021 compared to 777 in 2020.

There are also 12 per cent more shooting victims this year, the data shows, with 1,057 people falling prey to gun violence compared to 944 last year.

The biggest leap in crime rates is for hate crimes, which have surged by 103 per cent in the last year. The data come amid numerous random attacks on Asian Americans in the city in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. 

The suspect, seen here making his escape at the 168th Street station in Washington Heights, is accused of attacking the 40-year-old victim aboard a northbound C train

The suspect, seen here making his escape at the 168th Street station in Washington Heights, is accused of attacking the 40-year-old victim aboard a northbound C train 

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