Peddler Gunned Down in Times Square by Police
Shooting death of peddler Raymond Martinez occurs outside the Marriot Marquis Hotel in Times Square New York.
On Thursday, December 10, 2009, holiday shoppers and tourists in New York, bore witness to the shooting death of Raymond Martinez, a suspected panhandler, by law enforcement officer Sergeant Christopher Newsom. The shooting occurred outside the prestigious Marriot Marquis Hotel in Times Square.
Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly claims that the 25-year-old victim attempted to vanish into the crowd when his brother, Oliver, and himself were approached by the police officer and asked to provide tax identification.
Martinez was pursued by the police sergeant and is said to have fired two shots from a semiautomatic pistol. Sergeant Newsom returned fire shooting Martinez in the chest, arm and below the neck. Martinez passed away immediately.
Martinez, who was wanted for assault in The Bronx where he hailed from, was allegedly defrauding tourists and had been given a summons, along with his brother, Oliver, for not possessing tax identification mandatory for licensed peddlers.
Times Square is a popular tourist attraction and thus a gold mine for panhandlers and con artists. A special police unit has been established in the most problematic region. This year alone has seen more than four hundred peddlers apprehended and charged.
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