Erie County District Attorney Michael J. Keane announces that a jury found Irving D. Mitchell, also known as “Gotti,” 41, of Buffalo, guilty of one count of Assault in the First Degree (Class “B” violent felony) and one count of Criminal Possession of a Weapon in the Second Degree (Class “C” violent felony). Jurors rendered their decision yesterday afternoon after approximately 90 minutes of deliberation following a three-day trial.
During the early morning hours of Thursday, July 4, 2024, at approximately 4:00 a.m., the defendant intentionally fired a shot from an illegal handgun toward the victim on the 1400 block of East Delavan Avenue near Edison Avenue in the City of Buffalo. The victim, a 31-year-old male, was taken in a private vehicle to ECMC. The defendant was hospitalized for nearly two weeks and underwent multiple surgeries for serious physical injuries to his abdomen.
A handgun and a loaded extended magazine were recovered from a garbage tote near the scene of the crime. The defendant, who was on parole at the time of the crime, was later arrested on Friday, July 12, 2024. The following day, the defendant was arraigned in Buffalo City Court and remanded without bail.
Mitchell faces a maximum of 25 years in prison when he is sentenced as a second violent felony offender before Erie County Court Judge Susan Eagan on Monday, April 14, 2025, at 10:00 a.m. He remains held without bail.
DA Keane commends Detective Sergeant John Losi, Detective Anthony Shea, Detective Thomas Herbert, Detective Richard Cruz, Lieutenant Mark Godspeed, Lieutenant Jonathon Pietrzak, Captain Melinda Kaska, Officer Ian Brown, Officer Aaron Gervaise and Officer Joshua Kluge of the Buffalo Police Department for their work in this investigation.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant District Attorney Ryan M. Flaherty of the Major Crimes Bureau and Assistant District Attorney Megan A. Connelly of the Felony Trials Bureau.