NEW YORK (AP) — A passenger in the BMW where three men were found shot to death this month near Columbia University was arrested Saturday in their deaths, police said.
The victims might have been involved in stealing from drug dealers and were hit in retaliation, police had said after the June 7 killings. The gunman was believed to have been sitting in the backseat when the car stopped, and he fired quickly, police spokesman Paul Browne said. The tinted windows would have made it difficult to see from the outside.
Police didn’t release the suspect’s name, saying they were waiting for charges to be filed. Police have recovered the gun used in the killings, they said Saturday, and have found DNA linking the suspect to the shootings. Police say the DNA came from a shirt the gunman discarded near the crime scene.
Heriberto Suazo, 26, was in the front seat, slumped against the window, his white T-shirt soaked in blood. Amaury Rodriguez, 30, was behind the wheel, and Luis Catalan, 25, was in the backseat. All the men were shot in the head, and Catalan was also hit in the chest.
The victims had a list of prior arrests for charges including drug possession and assault. Two had been suspects in a 2010 shooting in which a man was beaten and wounded.
Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly said the detectives assigned to the case “did a masterful job, relentlessly working it to apprehend a suspect who initially appeared so calm, collected and out of reach.”
Related posts:
Views: 0