Preston Gamble, 15, shot and killed in dispute in Calverton, police say

A shooting during a dispute outside a Calverton condominium unit left a 15-year-old Riverhead High School student dead Wednesday, Suffolk County police said.

Police said the teen, identified as Preston Gamble of Calverton, was shot during a dispute between two groups of teens at the Calverton Hills condo complex on Hill Rise Drive and that following the shooting he was transported by family members to Peconic Bay Medical Center in Riverhead, where he was pronounced dead. The shooting occurred at about 3:55 p.m., police said.

“The dispute grew into gunfire and a teenage boy was killed,” Det. Lt. Kevin Beyrer, Commander of the Suffolk police Homicide Squad, said. “This is a very active investigation. We are processing the crime scene right now.”

Police have not announced any arrests in the case and as of Thursday morning, it remained unclear exactly how many people were involved. Beyrer said Wednesday those involved in the dispute were mostly teenagers, with some possibly in their early 20s.

“A fistfight broke out and erupted into gunfire and that’s what we know,” he said.

In an open letter late Wednesday, Riverhead School District Superintendent Augustine E. Tornatore issued a statement to the school community.

“It is with deepest sorrow that we inform you this evening that a Riverhead high school student was a victim of an act of violence that occurred in our community,” the open letter read, adding that counselors would be available throughout the district beginning Thursday to counsel students, faculty and staff.

“We will continue to update the community of support measures available throughout the district," Tornatore wrote.

Police are asking anyone with information about the shooting to call Crime Stoppers at 1-800-220-TIPS.

With Grant Parpan and Joan Gralla

By John Valenti

john.valenti@newsday.com

John Valenti, a reporter at Newsday since 1981, has been honored nationally by the Associated Press and Society of the Silurians for investigative, enterprise and breaking news reporting, as well as column writing, and is the author of “Swee'pea,” a book about former New York playground basketball star Lloyd Daniels. Valenti is featured in the Emmy Award-winning ESPN 30-for-30 film “Big Shot.”