Was Bronx Teen Damien Martinez Stabbed to Death Over $10 Refund or Did He Anger Alleged Gang Members?

Bronx teen Damien Martinez brutally beaten and stabbed to death by alleged gang members after asking for $10 refund for cover charge to house party.

A Bronx teen, Damien Martinez, was stabbed to death over a $10 refund to a house party. Taken at face value, one would be overcome with grief and anger that someone could lose their life over $10. According to the NY Daily News, Martinez tried to get a refund after he was kicked out of a party in the Tremont section of the Bronx, that got unruly. According to the NY Daily News, his sister, Starleena Vargas, said he was brutally beaten and stabbed by members of a gang as he tried to get his money back. Really? So, this isn't about the $10 refund, then is it? It would seem he angered these thugs for whatever reason, right? Well, be that as it may, no-one deserves to be beaten and stabbed. No-one. Still, why argue over $10? His life was worth far more than $10. The moral of this to all young people is, just walk away and watch the company you keep.

"They threw him on the floor and started kicking him," Starleena Vargas said. "When he tried to protect himself by curling up, they hit him in the head with a metal bat." She said the group then threw her brother down the stairs."They took out a kitchen knife and stabbed him in the neck," she said. "His friends ran away because the guys who did it are in a gang." Cops didn't immediately confirm that the dispute was over a $10 cover fee. There were no arrests and the investigation was ongoing, cops said.

She said Martinez was working toward getting his GED and planned to join the Army next year after he turned 18. He leaves behind a pregnant girlfriend. Vargas said most people weren't talking to cops because they were scared. Source

To any witnesses out there, do the decent and honorable thing by telling the police what you saw. It will mean one less gang member on the streets of the Bronx.