A car deal gone bad is believed to have sparked the Brooklyn shooting death of a hard-working teen food deliveryman, police sources say.
Steven Lantigua was trying to upgrade from the scooter he was using to make deliveries when he purchased a car earlier this month, his family says.
But the 18-year-old victim had two problems — he didn’t have a license and the car he bought didn’t work, according to his father.
“He worked a lot,” Lantigua’s father, Jose Lantigua, told the Daily News in Spanish. “He was young. He was focusing on making money for himself.”
The teen tried to return the car and get his money back five separate times but the seller wouldn’t budge, his father said.
“He told me he was going to take the title back to them so they would refund his money,” the father said.
Jose believed his son was out working when the teen was shot in the chest near Drew St. and Linden Blvd. in East New York about 3:35 p.m. April 10.
Medics rushed him to Brookdale University Hospital, where he died. He was about two miles from the home he shared with his father when he was shot.
No arrests have been made but police sources said they believe the shooting was sparked by car sale that went bad.
“He said he went to see them about five times but they refused to give him the money back,” Jose said. “However, my son never mentioned it to me again, because I had been advising him not to buy a car until he had his driver’s license.”
Jose kept in close contact with his hard-working son — including on the day of the slaying.
“I called a couple times and he never answered. I was worried,” Jose said. “Cops told us (he was killed) 24 hours later. It took awhile because he didn’t have ID with him.”
The victim dropped out of high school to make money working. He started out making deliveries by bike before upgrading to an electric scooter about four months ago, his father said.
But Steven wanted a car. His father never learned how much his son paid for the lemon.
“I don’t know how much he paid because after I told him not to buy a car, he never brought the subject up again,” the father said.
While homicides are down to historic lows citywide, they are up in the 75th Precinct covering East New York this year. The precinct had seen five slaying this year through April 12 compared to three by the same point last year, NYPD stats show.
Citywide, homicides are down 23%, with 65 victims so far this year through April 12 compared to 84 victims by that time last year.
Steven’s brother posted an online fundraiser to help cover his brother’s funeral expenses.
“He was a loving son, sibling, and friend who always tried to help those around him,” the victim’s brother wrote on the GoFundMe. “His absence leaves a huge void in our lives.”