February 5, 2023
MANHATTAN, NYC—A bodega worker on the Upper East Side was shot and killed during a robbery late Friday night by a robber dressed in a hazmat suit. Authorities believe the same gunman may have held up another store in the Bronx a half hour later.
According to the police, the gunman first walked into the Daona Deli on East 81st Street and Third Avenue around 11:30 p.m.
The suspect pointed a gun at a customer’s head and ordered him to lie on the ground and began taking his belongings.
The suspect then turned his attention to the 67-year-old Asian cashier behind the counter and began pistol-whipping him before walking to the back of the store, reports World Journal.
As the gunman made his way back to the front of the store, he shot the cashier in the head, killing him.
The gunman then fled on a scooter south on Third Avenue.
The police say the same gunman robbed Yaya Deli at gunpoint about a half hour later. Nobody was injured in that incident.
Yaya Deli was robbed of $1,000 worth of cash and merchandise, including Advil and NyQuill, says 30-year-old shop owner, Muaeen Qasem.
Authorities linked the suspect in both incidents because of the distinctive disguise he was wearing—a white, Tyvek hazmat suit and a black mask, according to ABC7.
The United Bodegas of America is offering a $5,000 reward for any information that leads to an arrest in these incidents.
Feature Screenshot via CBS New York YouTube