NEW YORK CITY — A gunman who fatally shot a man inside a parked car on a Staten Island street in January has been charged nearly a month after the death, police said.
Eduardo Morales, 23, of Borough Park, was arrested Wednesday on charges he shot Marcos Huallpa, 46, of Long Island City, police said.
Morales shot Huallpa as the victim sat inside his car parked in front of 188 Sand Lane in Arrochar around 10:15 p.m. on Jan. 20, police said.
Huallpa was taken to Staten Island University North where he was pronounced dead, according to police.
Morales was picked up on Jan. 23 in Jackson Heights for a gun possession charge, and police waited until they had a solid case to charge him for Huallpa's murder on Wednesday, according to a law enforcement source.
Morales was arraigned Wednesday on charges of murder and criminal possession of a weapon and was ordered held without bail, according to court records.
His laywer, Paul Capofari, said that Morales pleaded not guilty for the murder at his arraignment and declined to discuss the case further.
At the time of the shooting, Bob Boyce, NYPD Chief of Detectives, said Huallpa was on the phone setting up a meeting with a woman — who may be a prostitute — when he got into a dispute with Morales.
Police could not confirm the cause of the dispute on Wednesday.