Police search on for group wanted in connection to fatal shooting of man at Brooklyn gas station
NEW YORK -- A father who moved to this country from Ecuador for a better life was shot and killed in Brooklyn over the weekend by robbers who wanted his backpack.
Police said the man was defending himself when he was gunned down. The suspects are still on the loose.
CBS New York spoke to the victim's family in Bushwick.
Surveillance video shows 33-year-old Javier Sanchez's final moments. Just after 4 a.m. on Sunday, police say a group of people attempted to rob him.
The group is seen on the footage fighting at the gas station. Video from another angle shows people running, including one person wearing a ski mask.
Pablo Tayupanta is the victim's uncle by marriage. In Spanish, he told CBS New York, "We are very sad and we need help to send his body back to Ecuador because we don't have the economic means."
Family members said Sanchez came from Ecuador about a year ago. He worked in construction and occasionally drove an Uber. He lived in a Bushwick building with several family members and left behind a 5-year-old daughter in his native land.
"Javier was a hard worker. He came because there was no work there. He came here for his daughter. He had dreams, but, unfortunately, he wasn't able to make them come true," Tayupanta said.
A few minutes' walk from where Sanchez lived, loved ones posted a photo of him on a subway pillar, right where police say he was shot to death.
"He was a good cousin, friend, good family member, a good father. It hurts a lot. He leaves behind a void," Paul Tuza said through a translator.
Sources told CBS New York the robbers were after Sanchez's backpack, where he kept personal documents, adding he put up a fight. The surveillance video shows someone being shoved to the ground.
A few minutes after shots were fired, police were seen pulling up to the scene.
"I ask all those who have seen anything to come forth so the authorities can do their job and those responsible can be brought to justice," Tuza said.
NYPD officials said Sanchez was rushed to Elmhurst Hospital and later pronounced dead.
Investigators are searching for that group of people.
Anyone with any information is asked to call the NYPD's Crime Stoppers hotline at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477), or for Spanish, 1-888-57-PISTA (74782). You can also submit a tip via their website or via DM on Twitter, @NYPDTips. All calls are kept confidential.
