Melvin Anthony Nieves was 18 when he was fatally shot outside his Flushing home on the evening of January 19, 2000. The shooting happened about 10:28 p.m. outside the Carlyle Towers co-op on Franklin Avenue, a building where his father and grandfather had worked as managers for many years. Nieves, described as Hispanic, was struck once in the head at close range.

Earlier that night, around 8 p.m., Nieves reportedly confronted a young man who had been urinating near the building. The man — described as an 18 to 20-year-old Asian male — left with possibly two other Asian individuals in what may have been a maroon Toyota Camry with tinted windows. The vehicle is believed to have returned shortly afterward; the same man got out, words were exchanged, and the confrontation ended when Nieves was shot. Detectives from the 109th Police Precinct were questioning witnesses and pursuing several leads, but no arrests had been announced by late January 2000.

Family and friends remembered Nieves as proud and protective, always ready to help a friend; more than 150 people attended his funeral at St. Michael’s Church a few blocks from the scene. If anyone saw a maroon Toyota Camry or remembers the dispute that night, please come forward with information.