FORDHAM, the Bronx (PIX11) -- A man was shot and killed while confronting a robber in the Bronx Tuesday night, police said.
The shooting happened at the intersection of East Fordham Road and Morris Avenue in Fordham just before 9:50 p.m., according to police. It unfolded as two brothers confronted a man who robbed one of them earlier, police said.
Michael Mendez and his brother approached the robber, but things escalated, and the robber pulled out a gun and shot them both, according to police. Emergency crews rushed both brothers to a hospital, but 34-year-old Michael Mendez died, police said. His brother Chris survived.
A friend of the brothers told PIX11 News that the brothers worked as delivery workers and that they never bothered anyone. They are natives of the Dominican Republic, where most of their family members live. The friend said that the brothers were more like family to him as well.
Detectives were interviewing witnesses and looking for surveillance video on Thursday.
Submit tips to police by calling Crime Stoppers at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477), visiting crimestoppers.nypdonline.org, downloading the NYPD Crime Stoppers mobile app, or texting 274637 (CRIMES) then entering TIP577. Spanish-speaking callers are asked to dial 1-888-57-PISTA (74782).
