CROTONA PARK — A Bronx murder suspect and Bloods gang member who shot a second man who he robbed while on the run from police has been caught, officials said.
Ruben "Chulo" Pizzaro, 23, fatally shot David Rivera, 24, in the groin, torso, thigh and arm during an argument near Crotona Park around 9:15 a.m. on Nov. 24, police said.
Pizzaro spent more than a month hiding from police before he jumping into a parked Ford van in Inwood on Dec. 31, pointing a gun at the 22-year-old driver and ordering him to take him to 61 Ellwood St. a few blocks away, police said.
There, Pizzaro robbed and shot a 29-year-old man who was standing outside, police said.
The alleged gang member then made the Ford driver take him to an undisclosed location in the Bronx. The driver was unharmed and the shooting victim was taken to Harlem Hospital in stable condition, police said.
The police had been looking for him "non-stop" and finally found Pizzaro in front of a Kingsbridge building after receiving a tip, NYPD Chief of Detectives Robert Boyce said during an unrelated press conference Tuesday afternoon.
"This guy in middle of the day will shoot someone," Boyce said. "He’s cold."
Pizzaro had been arrested four times in the past for shootings, but was never successfully prosecuted, Boyce added.
When officers finally found him, nearly two months after the original shooting, Pizzaro again tried to flee, running back into the Kingsbridge building and then climbing out a back window, Boyce added. But officers were able to arrest him behind the building.
Excellent detective work has led to the apprehension of Ruben "Chulo" Pizzaro who is wanted for murder. #Nicejob pic.twitter.com/nhZ85vP7cm
— Chief Robert Boyce (@NYPDDetectives) January 12, 2016The murder weapon has not yet been recovered, Boyce added.
Pizzaro will be tried in Manhattan federal court, and authorities said they would not be deterred by his previous acquittals.
"[We will] go back and we’ll keep trying until we get these individuals off the streets," Boyce said.
