Thousands of people gathered to remember the life of Lesandro Guzman-Feliz on June 27, according to CBS News. The 15-year-old, known as Junior, was stabbed outside a Bronx bodega before running to a local hospital a few blocks away, where he collapsed and died. Junior’s death sparked outrage from family, friends, strangers, and celebrities on social media. Our Lady of Mount Carmel Church hosted the funeral, which was partially conducted in Spanish. Family and friends wore Yankee jerseys, a nod to a team beloved by Junior, to honor the slain teen, according to CBS New York. The local station reports that the crowd of mourners chanted “Justice for Junior" outside the church as pallbearers, including the teen’s father, carried his casket. The entire funeral was streamed by PIX11 News on YouTube. During the funeral, Father Jonathan Morris invited the youth to “make a decision that they are going to choose life and light rather than death and darkness,” as PIX11 reported. Morris referenced gang violence several times throughout the service and encouraged people to take action if they saw something bad going on. “Don’t just take a video,” he said. Junior’s gruesome attack was captured on video. Police believe Junior may have been a victim of a case of mistaken identity in a gang attack, according to the New York Post. The publication reported that the suspects, allegedly members of the Dominican gang Trinitarios, may have mistaken Lesandro for a teen who made a sex tape with one of their relatives. Eight people have been arrested and charged in connection with Lesandro's death, according to PIX11. Junior, an aspiring police officer, was a member of the NYPD Explorers program, and loved pepperoni pizza and video games, according to CBS New York. Mayor Bill de Blasio, who ABC 7 reported attended a wake for Junior earlier in the week, said he hopes to honor Junior’s memory by naming a part of the NYPD Explorers program after him. CBS New York reports that the family visited the memorial outside the bodega where Junior was attacked following the funeral, lighting candles in the teen’s honor. The station reports that the crowd outside the bodega has often grown so large since the teen’s death, it has shut down the street. Get the Teen Vogue Take. Sign up for the Teen Vogue weekly email. Want more from Teen Vogue? Check this out: 15-Year-Old Lesandro Guzman-Feliz Mourned by Hundreds in the Bronx<doc-sep>(CNN) — A sea of NYPD uniforms and Yankees jerseys crowded into a Bronx church Wednesday morning to lay to rest the teenager killed in a brutal gang stabbing last week. “We come together as a community,” Father Jonathan Morris of Our Lady of Mt. Carmel Church told the crowd, “to say no to the violence, to the gang life, and to all evil that is at the root of the death – the innocent death – of Junior Guzman-Feliz.” The funeral came a week after Guzman-Feliz, 15, was dragged from a store by a group of men, repeatedly stabbed on the sidewalk and left to die in a brutal murder that has sparked widespread outrage in the city and beyond. “The senseless nature of this horrific tragedy hit all of our communities, in every #NYC neighborhood, very hard,” New York Police Commissioner James O’Neill said on Twitter. After the service, crowds gathered outside the church chanted “Justice for Junior,” the phrase and hashtag that has become a rallying cry in the wake of the young man’s death. A large group of NYPD members also attended to honor Guzman-Feliz. The teenager was a member of the NYPD Explorers, a police program for young people interested in a career in law enforcement. DON EMMERT/AFP/Getty Images The body of Lesandro Guzman-Feliz, who went by Junior, is taken from the Our Lady of Mount Carmel church after funeral services on June 27, 2018 in New York. The incident began when a group of men surrounded the Bronx teenager at a bodega on East 183rd Street last Wednesday night, according to surveillance video of the incident released to CNN affiliate WPIX. The suspects grabbed the teen and dragged him along the ground out of the store before fatally stabbing him, the video shows. When the suspects fled, Guzman-Feliz ran to nearby Saint Barnabas Hospital, where he was pronounced dead, the NYPD said. “The stabbing murder of this young man is among the most brutal crimes I’ve seen in my 36yr career,” New York police Chief of Department Terence Monahan said on Twitter, asking for tips on the killing. As outrage grew this week over the teen’s killing, Guzman-Feliz’s face has appeared on the front of the New York Post for three days straight, and celebrities such as Cardi B and Rihanna have joined local New York leaders in the public mourning. A possible case of mistaken identity A police source with direct knowledge of the case told CNN that the killers appeared to have mistaken Guzman-Feliz for someone else. Eight men have been arrested for his murder so far, NYPD Chief of Detectives Dermot F. Shea said Tuesday. The suspects appear to be members of the Trinitarios street gang, he said. Trinitarios is the largest Dominican gang in the United States and is primarily based in New York and New Jersey, according to the FBI. “We will not tolerate thugs on the streets of the Bronx, whether it’s Trinitarios or any other gang involved in behavior of this sort,” Shea said. WPIX Surveillance video shows the teenager being dragged out of a Bronx bodega by a group of men. The source told CNN that the Trinitarios gang admitted on social media they attacked the wrong person. The source said New York police don’t know at this time why Guzman-Feliz was targeted. Kevin Alvarez, 19, was arrested and charged Sunday with second-degree murder, manslaughter, gang assault and assault. He pleaded not guilty to the charges and was held without bail at his arraignment Monday, a Bronx court official said. Alvarez is also associated with the Trinitarios, the law enforcement source told CNN. Alvarez’s attorney, Manuel Portela, asked the public to wait for the justice process to take its course. “Our role here is to ensure that his constitutional rights are protected throughout the process,” Portela said. “My client’s family’s hearts go out to the parents and the family of the victim.” Six other men between 18 and 24 were arrested Sunday in Paterson, New Jersey, the Passaic County Prosecutor’s Office said. The suspects waived extradition in court on Tuesday and so will be extradited to New York to face the same charges as Alvarez, Bronx District Attorney Darcel Clark said. An eighth defendant was also arrested in the Bronx and is due to be arraigned on those same charges later on Tuesday, Clark said. Guzman-Feliz’s mother praised the arrests but said they were not enough. “It’s good because they have to pay, but I want my son back,” Leandra Feliz, the teenager’s mother, told CNN affiliate WCBS. “If they could give me the life of my son, I’d be happy.” #JusticeForJunior Police said that Guzman-Feliz was also a member of the New York Police Department’s Explorers program, which gives young adults an introduction to a career in law enforcement, and dreamed of one day joining the NYPD. “He was never going to give up on his dream of being an NYPD detective & WE’LL NEVER GIVE UP ON HIM,” Shea said on Twitter. Chief Dermot F. Shea/NYPD The slain youth was a member of the New York Police Department's Explorers program, police said. Several police officials mourned Guzman-Feliz’s death and posted tributes to him. The New York City Patrolmen’s Benevolent Association posted a tribute to the slain teen on Twitter, saying his “dream of joining the NYPD was cut short by a murderous street gang.” The police union said it will “carry on in his memory, until the streets are safe” for all New Yorkers. Prayers for the family of #NYPDExplorer Lesandro Guzman-Feliz, whose dream of joining the NYPD was cut short by a murderous street gang. His death is proof that we cannot rest or retreat. We will carry on in his memory, until the streets are safe for all NYers. #justiceforjunior pic.twitter.com/CK7OhVbRJ2 — NYC PBA (@NYCPBA) June 24, 2018 A GoFundMe page started in his honor has raised more than $200,000 in five days. Donors from all 50 states and 34 countries have contributed, according to GoFundMe spokeswoman Kate Cichy. Rapper Cardi B, a Bronx native, contributed $8,000 under her legal name, Belcalis Almanzar. She posted a message on Instagram lamenting the teen’s death. “#JusticeForJunior” she wrote. “These Bronx streets are ruthless.” Singer Rihanna, who has more than 63 million followers on Instagram, posted a photo of Guzman-Feliz with the message “can’t stop thinking about this poor baby boy, and how his family must feel right now!”<doc-sep>NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) — A 15-year-old boy who police said was stabbed to death last week in the Bronx was remembered Wednesday for always having a bright smile on his face and his volunteer work in the community. Calls for “Justice for Junior” rang out as the father of Lesandro Guzman-Feliz helped carry his son’s casket. The teen’s mother stood strong outside Our Lady of Mount Carmel Church where the family regularly attended Mass, but instead Wednesday said goodbye to their beloved son known as Junior. The boy’s father was among loved ones wearing Yankees jerseys, a team his son passionately cheered for. Guzman-Feliz was remembered as a cheerful kid who loved pepperoni pizza, video games and had a passion to one day become a police officer. “He wanted to save people,” said John Grace, an auxiliary police officer with the 45th Precinct. “That was his desire to become a cop.” But that goal was cut short. A priest close to the family said they are still trying to cope with the teen’s horrific death. “Here’s a mother going through the most difficult thing anybody could go through,” Father Jonathan Morris told CBS2’s Natalie Duddridge. “She wants justice for Junior but also saying no to retaliation, saying no to vengeance.” “She’s really missing her son. I think it’s finally hit her, and she’s finally broken down,” said Bishop Fernando Rodriguez. “She’s destroyed.” No vengeance against the eight alleged Trinitarios gang members who police say chased the teen down last week, believing he was the one seen in a Snapchat video allegedly having sex with a cousin of one of the alleged gang members. Police said the teen was dragged out of a bodega and stabbed in the neck. Cell phone video shows Guzman-Feliz running to reach the hospital one block away, but he collapsed and died outside the emergency room. “Really affecting me,” said Belmont resident Victoria Perez. “I cry every single day because it’s like you don’t have to know somebody to feel their grief and pain.” “My heart is torn for the family, for that little boy. He didn’t deserve that,” family friend Yolanda Ramos said. On Tuesday, police said an eighth man had been arrested in connection with the case. Six other suspects waived extradition Tuesday in New Jersey and were arraigned Wednesday in Bronx criminal court. Kevin Alvarez, 19, Elvin Garcia, 23, Jose Muniz, 21, Jose Tavarez, 21, Jonaiki Martinez-Estrella, 24, Daniel Fernandez, 21, Manuel Rivera, 18, and Antonio Hernandez-Santiago, 24, face several charges, including murder, manslaughter and gang assault. We have made an 8th arrest in the investigation into the brutal murder of Lesandro “Junior” Guzman-Feliz. This investigation is still active and ongoing. We will leave no stone unturned as we work for #JusticeForJunior pic.twitter.com/lhA0W6EyPN — NYPD NEWS (@NYPDnews) June 26, 2018 Every night since his death, the crowd outside the bodega where the teen was killed has grown so large, it has shut down the street. Members of the teen’s family went back to the memorial following Wednesday’s funeral to light more candles for “Junior.” They asked for privacy as the 15-year-old’s loved ones continue to grieve.<doc-sep>
EMBED >More News Videos A memorial grows outside the Bronx bodega where 15-year-old Lesandro Guzman-Feliz was brutally murdered. In memory of Junior... Lesandro Guzman showed reporters the tattoo he got yesterday. An image of his son that he will carry forever and ever. #JUSTICEFORJUNIOR pic.twitter.com/LQT3A4Xukm — Joe Torres (@joetorresABC7) June 25, 2018 TREMONT, Bronx (WABC) -- Family, friends and mourners gathered Wednesday as funeral services were held for an innocent 15-year-old boy brutally murdered in the Bronx.Lesandro Guzman-Feliz's death has touched many people, and with the #JusticeForJunior hashtag trending in his remembrance, those affected by the senseless display of violence showed up by the thousands at Our Lady of Mount Carmel Church in the Belmont section to bid a final farewell to the teen affectionately known as Junior. "A cloud of sadness covers our hearts," the priest said during the service. "Not only Lesandro's family, but our hearts, our community, New York, the whole humanity. Because whenever someone dies tragically, there is a wound in this humanity and God's project is damaged. "Pallbearers dressed in Yankees jerseys carried the body in and out of church, and as the casket was loaded into the hearse at the conclusion of the funeral, the crowd outside the church chanted "Justice for Junior! ""This is disgusting what happened, and we are standing up as a community and saying we need to be the light," Fr. Jonathan Morris said. "We need to be the light in the darkness of this evil gang life and violence. ""This should not have happened," said one of the mourners, Patty Marsibilio. "He was a good kid. This shouldn't happen to anyone. "Guzman-Feliz was dragged out of a bodega on East 183rd Street and Bathgate Avenue in the Tremont section and slashed in the neck with a machete around 11:40 p.m. last Wednesday, allegedly by a group of gang members who had mistaken him for a rival. He attempted to run to St. Barnabas Hospital, located just a block away, but collapsed on the sidewalk.The funeral comes on the same day seven of the eight suspects who have been arrested appeared in court . Six of them are being extradited from Paterson, New Jersey, while the other two were arrested in the Bronx.Thousands also attended wakes held Monday and Tuesday at the Ortiz Funeral Home, with four-hour lines stretching around the block. Mayor Bill de Blasio was among those in attendance Tuesday, one of many who wanted to pay respects to the victim's family. "I think it's amazing," Leandro's sister-in-law Ione Gutierrez said. "I think it's justice for Junior. "Gutierrez remembers Junior as being devoted to his family and an outgoing, social young man in the NYPD's Explorer program. "I have not known him to have a bad day," NYPD Auxiliary Officer John Grace said. "He was always happy. So if everybody could remember him, it's by his smile. That's the one thing that would cheer you up every day. "Police Commissioner James O'Neill also made it a point to pay his respects to the family. Many others, with some moved to tears, felt it was important to show support for the family. "That's what really has us here because of my two daughters," parent Jose Andino said. "I got young kids his age, and to get them snatched up like that is crazy. "Many were not surprised by the huge turnout. "Not really, that shows unity," area resident Terri Ramos said. "Something that we have not seen in a long time. "Junior's father now has a permanent memorial on his left hand after he got a tattoo of his son this weekend. He says it is something he will carry with him forever.Celebrities around the country are also demanding Justice for Junior:A growing memorial of candles and photos outside the bodega has grown so large that officials closed off surrounding streets. "They broke my heart," Leandra Feliz said. "They killed my son, and they killed me at the same time ... I feel death right now. That's the only thing that can bring me back to life, real life. I want my son with me." ----------