A drug-dealing suspect wanted for shooting a man to death and wounding two others in Harlem has been nabbed after a four-year manhunt, police said Wednesday.
Darlin Martinez had been sought for questioning in the Jan. 23, 2020, shooting that left victim Christopher Allen, 27, fatally shot in the back, cops said.
“In January of 2020, a broad daylight triple shooting on West 135th St. shook West Harlem to its core,” 30th Precinct Captain Jessica Rivera tweeted Wednesday. “After 4 years of investigating and a manhunt, the person responsible was just arrested.”
Charges against Martinez were pending. Details of his capture were not immediately disclosed.
Shots rang out that day near W. 135th St. and Riverside Drive about 2 p.m. officials said.
Allen was rushed to New York-Presbyterian Hospital Columbia but could not be saved.
Medics took a second victim to St. Luke’s Roosevelt Hospital with gunshot wounds to his chest and leg, police said. The 26-year-old man was left paralyzed, Allen’s relatives told the Daily News.
A 27-year-old man took himself to the same hospital with a leg wound.
A police source said the shooting began with a dispute over a brown Audi sedan found parked diagonally in the middle of the street.
In January of 2020, a broad daylight triple shooting on west 135th st shook West Harlem to its core.
After 4 years of investigating and a subsequential manhunt, the person responsible was just arrested thanks to the great work of @NYPDDetectives and members of the @NYPDPBMN CRT. pic.twitter.com/Qp8oaX76XG
— NYPD 30th Precinct (@NYPD30Pct) July 17, 2024
Cops quickly zeroed in on Martinez, who had been arrested on drug possession and drug sale charges in January 2019, cops said.
When they announced their search for Martinez, they said he was known to frequent the Bronx near the Grand Concourse, Bronx Terminal Market, and Yankee Stadium. A $2,500 reward was offered for information leading to his arrest.
Allen, a father of four, lived in the Bronx but his family lived in Harlem.
“He was a good young guy, he was a good father to his kids. He loved his kids,” Allen’s aunt Sheridan Allen told the Daily News shortly after his death.
