Police said two 28-year-old men were shot outside Sal’s Deli & Grocery near Avenue B and East 13th Street.
NEW YORK, NY — A 28-year-old deli worker was shot and killed late Saturday outside his family’s East Village store after a dispute that began inside the business moved onto the sidewalk, police and witnesses said.
Police identified the worker as Abdul Saleh, who worked at Sal’s Deli & Grocery near Avenue B and East 13th Street. Officers responding to a 911 call just after 11:30 p.m. found Saleh and another 28-year-old man with gunshot wounds to the torso. Both were taken to Bellevue Hospital, where Saleh was pronounced dead. The other man was listed in stable condition.
The shooting shook a corner of Alphabet City where small groceries, pizza shops and late-night foot traffic sit close together. Police said the violence followed a verbal dispute inside the deli. Witnesses said the argument moved outside before gunfire broke out. Investigators had not announced an arrest by Sunday afternoon, and they were still reviewing what happened before the shots were fired.
Saleh was working at the family-owned store when the dispute unfolded, according to people who knew him. The shooting happened in front of the deli shortly before midnight Saturday. A nearby worker said he heard two pops while making pizza, then saw a wounded man walk up the block holding his stomach and sit on a bench. Another person who knew Saleh said people from the neighborhood came running in to say he had been shot.
Police said both men were struck in the torso. Investigators were looking at whether the second wounded man was the person involved in the dispute with Saleh. A witness account said the gunman may have been hit by a ricochet, but police had not publicly confirmed all details of the shooting. Officials also had not released the second man’s name or said whether charges were pending.
Friends and relatives described Saleh as a familiar face at the deli and said he had recently returned from Yemen, where his family lives. One friend, Jack Lugo, said Saleh had FaceTimed with his daughter shortly before the shooting and showed her Lugo’s dog. The call happened about 30 to 45 minutes before the gunfire, Lugo said. Others left candles, flowers and a handwritten sign outside the store as a small memorial grew near the corner.
The killing renewed concern among bodega owners and workers over safety in neighborhood stores that often stay open late and serve as gathering places. Fernando Mateo, a spokesman for a bodega business group, said repeat violence against store workers needs a stronger response. “When you get away with something over and over again, you’re going to commit a bigger crime every time,” Mateo said.
The case remained under investigation Monday. Police had not announced an arrest, and officials had not released a full account of the dispute, the weapon or any possible charges. The next key step is whether detectives determine the role of the surviving wounded man and whether prosecutors file charges in Saleh’s death.
Author note: Last updated April 27, 2026.