SOUTH WILLIAMSBURG — A father of two who relatives say was gunned down Sunday in a dispute over a debt was remembered this week as a devoted dad and husband who loved softball.
Sadan Garcia, 25, died Sunday at Woodhull Medical Center soon after being shot in the chest, police said.
Friends and relatives gathered Monday in front of his South 4th Street home and built a shrine in his honor with dozens of candles. Garcia still lived on the South 4th Street block where he was raised, surrounded by 10 brothers and sisters and a handful of cousins, aunts and uncles, relatives said.
"He's the one who brought everyone together. He's the one who brought a smile to everyone," said Matthew Maldonado, a 19-year-old cousin who lived nearby.
Garcia, who worked for a time in construction, had dedicated himself lately to caring for his kids full-time while his wife worked, his brother said.
"He was very responsible," his mother Ileana Cotto, 49, said in Spanish. "He was always there for them."
The family has told his 5-year-old son about the shooting death, but not his 2-year-old, Cotto said.
"Where's daddy? Where's daddy?" the younger boy keeps asking.
Beyond his love for his wife and children, Garcia's undisputed passion was softball, relatives said. He had played baseball since he was a child, and switched to softball a few years ago.
Friends who loved watching him play had dubbed him "El NASA" because he could run like a rocket.
"He had a golden glove," said Jonathan Charriez, 32, manager of Brooklyn's Best Softball League, where Garcia had played for several different teams. He'd known Garcia since 2009 when they started on a team together. Garcia was a fast and agile second baseman and an "up-the-middle hitter," Charriez said.
But, most of all, Garcia brought positive energy to the field, Charriez said, earning him the quick respect of teammates.
"We could be losing 7-0 and he would sit there telling us to keep our heads up," he said. "He was a leader."
In 2009, Garcia and Charriez had both wanted the number "23" for their jersey. Garcia, who looked up to the league manager like a big brother, eventually gave in — and wound up with the number "2.3" instead. His decimal-numbered jersey earned him the affectionate nickname of "Sdot," that stuck for years, Charriez said.
In Garcia's honor, the league will retire number 23, Charriez said, after printing jerseys bearing the digits for the entire team.
Garcia's older brother, Freddy Garcia, 28, who was with him the night of his death, said the two were best friends. Still, a few weeks back they'd bickered about money. Freddy recalled telling his brother that he thought he should return to his construction job instead of caring for the kids.
"I'm telling you, you gotta work. Money makes the world go round," the brother had argued. Sadan asked Freddy what being rich meant to him, who'd responded it meant not having to worry about rent.
"You want to know what's 'rich' to me?" Sadan had asked, his brother recalled. "To me rich is spending time with my wife and kids. I'm rich."
Freddy said: "That sums up the man my brother became, a real husband and father."
The night of the fatal shooting, the brothers had fought with a cousin of Sadan's wife, who owed Freddy money, Freddy Garcia said.
Punches were thrown, and the two drove off thinking the argument was settled.
But the relative caught up with them several blocks away, near the intersection of South 9th and Berry streets, firing shots into the SUV, Freddy Garcia said.
He said he managed to get his brother to Woodhull hospital within 10 minutes, but the 25-year-old couldn't be saved.
He said the underlying cause of the beef — money — now weighs heavy on him, knowing how little money meant to brother.
Capt. William Gardner of the 90th Precinct said investigators have identified a person of interest and he expects an arrest soon.
