In the early morning hours of July 14, 1980, off-duty New York City Police Detective Abraham Walton, 38, was at the Desire Club in Richmond Hill, Queens, when four armed men entered and announced a robbery. The gunmen ordered patrons to lie on the floor and began taking valuables. Walton initially complied, but when the bar manager was assaulted he identified himself, drew his weapon and attempted to stop the robbery. A gunfight followed; Walton was shot multiple times, taken to Jamaica Hospital and died about five hours later. The robbers fled with Walton’s service revolver, wallet and police shield.

Two men, Mottis Craig and Henry Robinson, were arrested and convicted on March 30, 1982, of felony murder, robbery and attempted robbery and sentenced to 25 years to life. That verdict was later vacated and both were retried; after the new trials Craig and Robinson were convicted of manslaughter. Craig was released in January 1991; Robinson received a manslaughter term of 6 to 12 years plus an 18-year sentence on a separate robbery. Walton, a 12-year veteran who had received 33 departmental citations, was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor on June 11, 1981; he was survived by his wife and three children and is commemorated by a NYPD K-9 named Abe.

Are there details about that night or the investigation that people in the area remember and can share?