A gang member busted in Maryland for firing a bullet that killed a 13-year-old boy in Brooklyn tried to fool the cops by claiming he was former NFL bad boy Terrell Owens, a police officer testified Tuesday.
The Maryland cop told Brooklyn jurors that the defendant, Akbar Johns, claimed he was the former NFL wide receiver when police roused him during an early-morning raid and asked for ID.
Maryland police received a tip that the man was hiding out in Cumberland after firing the shots that killed the teen, Ronald Wallace III, in August 2012.
Arresting officer Korey Roundes told the court that Johns said his name was Terrell Owens and gave his birthday as Sept 1, 1989. The ex-football star’s real birthday is Dec 7, 1973.
“Are you a Ravens or Redskins fan?” defense attorney Jonathan Strauss asked Roundes, now a sergeant, during the testimony.
“Actually, I’m a Jets fan,” Roundes told the Brooklyn Supreme jury.
“So you knew he wasn’t Terrell Owens?” Strauss asked.
“Yes, I had an idea he wasn’t,” Roundes responded.
“Thank you for coming to see us, sergeant,” Strauss said, adding, “Good luck with the Jets.”
Johns fired the shots that killed the teen as a warning to gang members who were taunting him, he allegedly told cops.
“I seen a red laser light pointed at me, and somebody screamed out, ‘We got one,’ ” Johns told cops after his arrest. So he went home to the Brevoort Houses in Bedford-Stuyvesant and picked up a revolver.
Later in the night, he recognized the group and fired a shot into the darkness between two bodies. They didn’t react, so he fired two more shots.
“I didn’t mean to shoot anybody,” Johns told police. “I was just trying to get them away from me.”
The now-retired Owens played 15 seasons in the NFL, appearing in six Pro Bowls. The controversial Owens was known for flamboyant celebrations and clashes with teammates, and in 2006 overdosed on the pain medicine hydrocone.