Hundreds Mourn Victims Of Gang Killings

It was an emotional week for the families and friends of the four young men found brutally murdered due to gang violence as the funeral services began taking place this past Wednesday and Thursday.

Last Wednesday, the bodies of 16-year-old Justin Llivicura, of East Patchogue, 20-year-old Michael Banegas, of Brentwood, 18-year-old Jorge Tigre, of Bellport, and 18-year-old Jefferson Villalobos, of Pompano Beach, Fla., were found in a Central Islip park.

On Monday, a vigil organized by the nonprofit group Angels of Long Island was held at Bellport High School in Brookhaven where Llivicura and Tigre attended.

The first funeral service was held for Llivcura on Wednesday morning at the St. Joseph the Worker Church in East Patchogue.

A total of about 200 guests attended the service to mourn the youngest of the four found dead, including his mother, Blanca Zhicat; his father, Marcelo Llivicura and Bishop John Barres, head of the Diocese of Rockville Centre, according to a report in Newsday.

"He never gave me problems," Marcelo told ABC. "He wasn't out on the streets. He was always respectful. Now he's in heaven. My son. I hope that the police are able to find the people so this doesn't happen again."

During the service, Zhicat asked the community to help support the police.

"Police always need support because no parent should go through what happened to me, again," she said according to NBC. "The way in which my son died is very ugly. I hope that if he is caught, justice is done."

In addition, the Rev. Martin Curtin prayed for the violence to end. He told NBC that no one expected Llivicura's life to end in such a violent way.

"It's not an expression of his life," Curtan told NBC. "In one way or another, he was grabbed up when this happened to him. It's not a reflection of his world and his life."

Funeral services for both Tigre and Banegas were scheduled for Thursday morning.

Banegas wake, which was held in Bay Shore, also drew over 200 mourners including Rep. Peter King (R-Seaford) as well as his parents Lourdes Lopez Banegas and Carlos Lopez and his aunt Mary Banegas and uncle Luis Banegas.

“Michael! Why did they do this to my boy? Why?” Lopez Banegas said, according to Newsday.

A family member of Banegas started a GoFundMe page to help raise money to send his remains back to Honduras.

Tigre's funeral was attended by his mother, Berta Ullaguari, his three brothers and two sisters, as well as friends and classmates from Bellport High School.

A funeral service for Villalobos, Banegas’ cousin, has not yet been scheduled but it appears his family might transport his remains to Honduras.

Photo: Spencer Platt/Getty Images