North Carolina teen ‘died a hero’ shielding boy from barrage of bullets, family says

Mike Stunson
·2 min read

Close to graduating from high school, Al-Tarrek Bell had dreams of becoming a model in the bustling metropolis of Chicago or Los Angeles.

But the North Carolina 18-year-old, whose loves included music and his flowing dreadlocks according to his mother, also made promises to protect a 10-year-old relative. The pair were “inseparable,” according to family members.

On March 27 in Edgewater Park, New Jersey, the Skinnersville native made true of his promise.

“Thank God my son was there to protect the little boy in the back seat,” Bell’s mother, Izetta Howell, said in an interview this week with WABC, recalling the events that led to her son’s death.

Bell was in the backseat of a vehicle hit with a barrage of gunfire just after midnight outside an apartment complex in the small New Jersey town near Philadelphia, police said. Bell and the driver, 25-year-old Sadiel Gonzalez, were both killed, according to police.

Police said two people survived the shooting. One of them was the 10-year-old boy who was sitting beside Bell, the boy’s mother wrote in a Facebook post.

“He shield(ed) my son, and made sure he was safe. I will never ever, forget you!!” Jacqueline Santiago wrote. “We will keep your name alive. You always said to me you got him. You will always protect him and you (kept) your word. You did exactly that, you gave your life to save his. You are your brother’s keeper.”

Bell was in New Jersey visiting his girlfriend’s family, WABC reported.

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The motive of the shooting is unclear. No arrests have been made, according to the Burlington County Prosecutor’s Office.

Howell described her son, weeks away from celebrating his 19th birthday, as witty and a comedian of sorts, she told the Courier Post. He rapped, sang, played drums and recently began writing and recording his own music, she told the newspaper.

“He was about to do major things,” Howell said.

Bell was described by a school counselor as a “good kid” who was “never disrespectful.” Another loved one said, “The good die young.”

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Howell said the death of her son is “better to deal with” knowing he saved a boy’s life.

“When he would come to school, his smile would light up the whole school,” Howell told WABC. “Now, when I walk outside, his smile lights up the sky and that makes me feel good.”

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