On the morning of April 27, 2023, a dispute inside Primetime Auto Sales & Repairs on Forbes Avenue in New Haven turned deadly when 39-year-old owner Juan Carlos Colon was shot in the back. Colon, a Hispanic man born in Barranquitas, Puerto Rico, was a married father of two who ran the business with partner Charles V. Brown Jr.

Police were called around 11 a.m.; the caller initially told dispatch that the shooter had fled but later was identified as Brown. Officers found Colon unresponsive in a back room described as a tattoo studio. Emergency crews briefly restored a pulse but he died shortly after arrival at Yale New Haven Hospital. Investigators recovered three spent shell casings at the scene.

Brown, 47, of Clinton, admitted to shooting Colon, saying the argument over business finances escalated, that Colon owed him about $40,000, and that a struggle followed when Colon allegedly charged him. Brown was taken into custody the same day and charged with murder, criminal possession of a firearm, and carrying a pistol without a permit; he was arraigned and held on $2 million bond.

Did anyone in the area know about tensions between the partners or the business leading up to April 27?