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Second Person Dies Following Hammer Attack At Brooklyn Restaurant
By
Jake Offenhartz
Published Jan 18, 2019
Modified Jan 18, 2019
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By
Jake Offenhartz
Published Jan 18, 2019
Modified Jan 18, 2019
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A second person has died from injuries inflicted by the hammer-wielding man who stormed a Brooklyn restaurant earlier this week, authorities said on Friday.
According to police, Arthur Martunovich entered the Seaport Buffet in Sheepshead Bay on Tuesday night and began attacking Asian employees with a hammer. The restaurant's 34-year-old chef, Fufai Pun, was pronounced dead at the scene, while manager Tsz Mat Pung, 50, and owner Kheon Ng-Thang, 60, were left in critical condition. One of those men has since succumbed to injuries, police said, though it's unclear which one.
Earlier this week, law enforcement sources told NBC that Martunovich, 34, was motivated to target the Asian employees after watching movies in which Chinese women are mistreated by Chinese men. He first encountered Latino workers at the Emmons Avenue eatery, but told them "I am not here for you," according to one source.
Some customers reportedly took cover at Randazzo's Clam Bar during the bloody rampage. "We let them in, and they said a guy came in crazy with a hammer and started hammering random people," owner Samantha Randazzo told ABC-7. "One of the workers came in here and said he started screaming and went crazy."
"He was screaming crazy words, like 'I'm killing everybody,' he was just screaming crazy things," Randazzo added. "They said he went in a city uniform, and he came in and just went crazy."
Martinuvich, a construction worker who lives in Brighton Beach, fled the restaurant after the attack, but was quickly picked up by police. The Daily News reports that he assaulted an officer who escorted him to the restroom after his arrest, and that multiple officers sustained injuries while trying to restrain him. He was "rambling" and "saying psycho stuff about space aliens" during the interrogation, a source told the Post.
Martinuvich was charged with murder, attempted murder and criminal possession of a weapon. He will likely face additional charges for the death of the second person. A spokesperson for the NYPD said there were no updates about the third victim at this time.
Tagged
arthur martunovich
hammer attack
HOMICIDE
nypd
sheepshead bay
Jake Offenhartz
Jake Offenhartz is a former Gothamist reporter.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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