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East Village Deli Shooting: Beloved Worker Killed, Neighbors Bereft

The 28-year-old victim, who worked at Sal’s Deli & Grocery on the corner of Avenue B and East 13th St., had just returned from visiting his family in Yemen.

East Village /
| 27 Apr 2026 | 04:09
    Candles, flowers and a handwritten sign at the makeshift memorial outside Sal’s Deli and Grocery were Abdul Saleh was killed on the night of April 25. The photo shows him with his young son.
    Candles, flowers and a handwritten sign at the makeshift memorial outside Sal’s Deli and Grocery were Abdul Saleh was killed on the night of April 25. The photo shows him with his young son.
    ”We will always miss you,” said a note on one bouquet left outside Sal’s Deli & Grocery. Abdul Saleh, a worker in the store, died from a gun shot wound after an altercation with another man on the night of April 25.
    ”We will always miss you,” said a note on one bouquet left outside Sal’s Deli & Grocery. Abdul Saleh, a worker in the store, died from a gun shot wound after an altercation with another man on the night of April 25. ( Photo: Keith J. Kelly)
    A photo of Abdul Saleh and his young son taped to a handwritten RIP sign outside Sal’s Deli.
    A photo of Abdul Saleh and his young son taped to a handwritten RIP sign outside Sal’s Deli. ( Photo: Keith J. Kelly)
    District leader Ciara Lugo said the death of 28-year-old deli worker Abdul Saleh is “a great loss to the community”
    District leader Ciara Lugo said the death of 28-year-old deli worker Abdul Saleh is “a great loss to the community” ( Photo: Keith J. Kelly)
    A 9th Precinct police cruiser from the sits outside Sal’s Deli where 28-year-old Abdul Saleh worked.
    A 9th Precinct police cruiser from the sits outside Sal’s Deli where 28-year-old Abdul Saleh worked. ( Photo: Keith J. Kelly)
    Jack Lugo, a neighborhood resident who put up the handwritten sign, lights a candle in memory of deli worker Abdu Saleh who was killed on April 25.
    Jack Lugo, a neighborhood resident who put up the handwritten sign, lights a candle in memory of deli worker Abdu Saleh who was killed on April 25. ( Photo: Keith J. Kelly)
    The gunman staggered to the bench outside Pop’s Pizza on Avenue “B” after a scuffle with Abdul Saleh who worked in Sal’s Deli. Both had gunshot wounds. Saleh died of his wound. The alleged gunman, who was later identified as Kavone Horton was arrested and charged with murder.
    The gunman staggered to the bench outside Pop’s Pizza on Avenue “B” after a scuffle with Abdul Saleh who worked in Sal’s Deli. Both had gunshot wounds. Saleh died of his wound. The alleged gunman, who was later identified as Kavone Horton was arrested and charged with murder. ( Photo: Keith J. Kelly)
    Miguel Torres (far right), a patron of Sal’s deli said he’d often sit for hours enjoying coffee with worker Abdul Saleh. Emory (left) said he’d often sweep up outside the store.
    Miguel Torres (far right), a patron of Sal’s deli said he’d often sit for hours enjoying coffee with worker Abdul Saleh. Emory (left) said he’d often sweep up outside the store. ( Photo: Keith J. Kelly)
    A handwritten sign outside Sal’s Deli & Grocery is in memory of Abdul Saleh.
    A handwritten sign outside Sal’s Deli & Grocery is in memory of Abdul Saleh. ( Photo: Keith J. Kelly)
    An argument erupted inside Sal’s Deli on E. 13th and Ave. B, and spilled across the street.
    An argument erupted inside Sal’s Deli on E. 13th and Ave. B, and spilled across the street. ( Photo: Keith J. Kelly)

A young woman stopped in front of Sal’s Deli & Grocery on the corner of East 13th Street and Avenue B on Sunday April 26 and noticed a growing makeshift memorial. “Abdul was shot last night,” said neighborhood resident Jack Lugo, referring to a beloved worker at the deli, “and he died.”

“Oh my God,” she said.

”Everybody knew Abdul,” said Lugo.

Police identified the victim as Abdul Saleh, 28. The name of the other man, who also suffered a gunshot wound to the abdomen, had not been revealed by police at press time. Reports said the other man shot Saleh Locals told OT Downtown that the shooter lives in the neighborhood a block away from the store.

The makeshift memorial continued to grown on April 27. “We will always miss you,” said a note written by “Sahil” on the side of the wrapping around a bouquet of flowers. “Thank you for your trash talk, your laughter and your friendship.”

The victim’s address was listed as 542 E. 14th St. Neighborhood residents said he lived there with other family members who worked at the nearby Brothers Deli & Grocery, a block away from the scene of the fatal encounter. Like Sal’s Deli, the Brothers Deli & Grocery was closed on April 26, it’s metal grey gates drawn down. Sal’s remained closed on April 27 but the Brother’s had reopened.

”He is going to be missed,” Jack Lugo told Our Town Downtown. Lugo was at the deli when the argument erupted on the night of April 25. The next morning, he taped an “R.I.P Abdul” sign on the gate of the shuttered storefront as others in the neighborhood stopped by the deli on 216 Ave. B.

“It’s a great loss to the community,” said Ciaria Lugo, a district leader and Jack’s daughter. “I could not believe it,” she said. “The family is so sweet. They all have a sense of humor.”

“He was a loved, pillar of the community,” agreed the elder Lugo.

He said the dispute spilled out of the store and across the street to the southeast corner of Avenue “B” and East 13th Street. Lugo said the other person had the gun and shot Abdul. Abdul fell on the street.

It isn’t clear how the still unidentified person was wounded. One report said his wound came when he was hit with a ricocheting bullet from his own gun. After he was shot, he tried to flee but only made it as far as Pop’s Pizza, a half block away.

Said a worker at Pop’s of the wounded man, “he came and sat on the bench,” which was on the street outside the shop. EMS ambulances rushed both the man and Saleh to Bellevue Hospital, where Saleh was pronounced dead.

A steady customer of Sal’s Deli named Miguel Torres said he stopped in the store only an hour before the shooting. “I was getting a ham and cheese sandwich for my godson,” said Torres, who lives a block away but said he only heard the devastating news about Abdul when he awoke on the morning of April 26.

“I was always the guy sitting in the corner having my coffee every morning,” he said, noting he’d often pass the time in the store for hours. But there was no coffee today. ”He just got back from visiting his family in Yemen,” added Miguel.

”I can’t believe it,” he said, looking forlornly across the street.

A friend named Emory stood with him across the street. “I used to sweep up the street outside the shop,” he said, looking on through grief stricken eyes.

While police would seemingly know the ID of the second man, his name has not been released. The unidentified individual was said to be in stable condition at Bellevue Hospital. Police said there has been no arrest and the investigation is continuing.