Hooligan whose alleged gunfight led to death of Harlem community pillar ‘Momma Zee’ was out on bail in slashing case

A hooligan whose reckless gunfight allegedly led to nan tragic decease of beloved Harlem organization pillar Excenia Mette was retired connected bail successful a slashing lawsuit erstwhile nan senseless shooting unfolded, The Post has learned.

Darious Smith, 23, pulled a achromatic Tyvek suit complete his look arsenic he was pushed successful a wheelchair into a Manhattan courthouse Thursday to look charges of attempted execution and criminal possession of a firearm for Mette’s death.

Sources said Smith is believed to person exchanged shots pinch nan still-at-large gunman whose stray slug deed Mette successful nan caput arsenic she selflessly rushed extracurricular to cheque connected her grandson Tuesday night.

Smith was changeable successful nan ft during nan scuffle.

Manhattan Criminal Court Judge Kacie Lally ordered Smith to beryllium jailed without bail — an result he dodged nan past clip he stood accused of a convulsive crime.

“This is what’s making our occupation harder,” Mayor Eric Adams said Thursday during an arena about taking forbidden guns disconnected nan streets.

“When you let those who person recidivism, continuous unit in our city to proceed to locomotion nan streets,” he said.

“Criminal justness strategy includes police, judiciary, and legislators. They each must beryllium engaged connected nan aforesaid path.”

Records show Smith was arrested successful June 2024 aft he allegedly slashed 2 group pinch a container cutter connected Lenox Avenue adjacent West 118th Street while he tried to bargain e-bike batteries.

When he was arraigned connected robbery and battle charges, prosecutors successful Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s agency requested bail astatine $50,000 rate aliases $150,000 bond, records show.

But Judge Michael Ryan group it astatine $10,000, which Smith posted — allowing him to locomotion free up of his scheduled May trial, sources said.

Smith lived conscionable a artifact distant from Mette’s erstwhile business, Momma Zee’s Food to Plez Deli, which was nan first achromatic woman-owned bodega successful nan metropolis erstwhile she opened it successful nan 1980s.

Loved ones and neighbors gathered Thursday astatine a makeshift shrine successful beforehand of Mette’s location astatine West 113th Street and Lenox Avenue, wherever she was shot.

They hung up a photograph of Mette, whom they affectionately knew arsenic “Momma Zee” aliases “Zeenie,” frolicking connected a beach.

Neighbor Barbara Johnson, 66, said she wasn’t amazed 1 of nan shooters is an accused repetition offender.

“They request to do thing for nan youth, to support them occupied, springiness them thing to do, thing to look guardant to,” she said.

“Idle hands is nan Devil’s workshop.”

“No strategy devised to support nan group down will do thing to thief america up, and that’s from nan beginning, nan first time of this country.”

Adams, speaking to PIX11 Wednesday night, alternatively blamed nan criminal justness strategy for allowing Smith to beryllium retired connected nan streets.

“Public information is simply a criminal justness servants of nan state that includes police, that includes judges, that includes lawmakers. The police are doing their job,” he said.

“When you person a personification pinch repeated violence, conscionable past year, he was arrested for robbery, stabbing 2 people. Now he’s backmost on the street, progressive successful a shooting that took the life of an guiltless woman. We person to have the other parts of the criminal justness strategy do their job.”

City Councilman Yusef Salaam (D-Manhattan) — who represents nan Harlem vicinity and chairs nan council’s nationalist information committee — issued a heartfelt remembrance of Mette, and blamed nan unit successful portion connected systemic failures.

“Harlem is successful mourning for Mette, who fed nan community, stood beside nan younker and gave backmost done work pinch leaders specified arsenic nan Rev. Al Sharpton and nan creator Jim Jones,” Salaam said.

“This enactment of unit — nan consequence of reckless and deadly conflict connected our streets — is yet different achy reminder that we are successful nan midst of a nationalist information crisis,” he said.

“It is simply a situation rooted not conscionable successful crime, but successful a agelong history of disinvestment, deficiency of opportunity, and nan systemic failures that proceed to plague our neighborhoods.”

Other lawmakers representing nan area focused connected weapon prevention efforts, specified arsenic Assemblyman Jordan Wright (D-Manhattan), who called it a reminder “of really imperative it is to get guns disconnected of our streets.”

“We person to proceed fighting difficult together to find solutions,” added authorities Sen. Cordelle Cleare (D-Manhattan) in a statement.

“Now is not nan clip for resources to beryllium cut.”

Video footage showed a man matching Smith’s explanation thrust a scooter toward a group of people, propulsion a weapon and occurrence 2 shots, tribunal papers state.

Police judge nan 2nd fishy past grabbed a weapon of his ain and fired disconnected nan shots that wounded Smith and killed Mette, law-enforcement sources person said.

Smith allegedly rode nan scooter on West 113th Street earlier he collided pinch an NYPD bull who tried to extremity him, nan tribunal docs state.

He ran distant onto St. Nicholas Avenue, wherever he threw a 9-millimeter pistol to nan sidewalk, nan papers state.

Sources said 8 bullets were recovered astatine nan fatal shooting scene.

Smith’s high-profile criminal defense lawyer Dawn Florio claimed successful tribunal that 4 cops hit him pinch a guns and a Taser, successful summation to his gunshot wound.

She asked for aesculapian attraction for Smith and griped that him being connected pinch nan shooting is causing problems for his loved ones.

“My client’s family who lives successful nan vicinity is getting threatened,” she said.

— Additional reporting by Vaughn Golden and Hannah Fierick