On March 12, 2010, 21-year-old John F. Maldonado of New Windsor, known as Tarzan, was shot in the back and left to die near Benkard Avenue and Little Monument Street in Newburgh, New York. His killing was portrayed as a planned execution tied to gang retaliation: the day before, 20-year-old Jerome Scarlett, a member of the Latin Kings, had been killed, and leaders of the Newburgh Latin Kings suspected Maldonado of involvement.

Maldonado was lured to the intersection where a shooter waited; reports say gang leaders were on the phone while standing over his dying body. The case prompted a federal and local investigation that culminated in a sweeping indictment in February 2011 charging numerous members and associates with racketeering, drug offenses and the murders of Maldonado and Scarlett. Several high-ranking Latin Kings were identified in the indictment as having ordered or assisted the killing.

Does anyone have additional information about Maldonado’s life in New Windsor or about activity around Benkard and Little Monument Street in March 2010?