2 Harlem Homicides Leave Men Dead Within Minutes Of Each Other: Police

HARLEM, NY — Two men were killed within six-blocks of one another in Harlem on Saturday in separate attacks that happened just a little over 20 minutes apart, according to police.

After receiving a 911 call at 12:13 a.m., cops discovered a 27-year-old man in front of a brownstone at 39 West 130 St. with a stab wound to his torso, according to the NYPD.

The man was sent to NYC Health + Hospitals/Harlem, where he was pronounced dead, police said.

“It looks like the victim was involved in a verbal dispute with an unknown male,” a police spokesman told Patch. “The unknown male displayed a weapon … it turned physical and then he stabbed the victim in the chest.”

The release of his identity is pending notification of family, according to the NYPD.

Police received another phone call at 12:36 a.m. and responded to 146 West 124th St. — between Malcolm X and Adam Clayton Powell, Jr. boulevards, and about a 10-minute walk from the other crime scene.

Upon arrival, authorities found James Johnson, 35, unconscious and unresponsive with a gunshot wound to his neck, police said.

“Witnesses saw the victim involved in a dispute with an unknown male,” the spokesman said.

The suspect was described as a dark-skinned male wearing a black shirt. He fled on foot going westbound on 124th Street, the spokesman said.

Johnson’s death may have been over a game of dice, law enforcement sources said.

Johnson was pronounced dead at the scene, police said.

Despite the timing and proximity, police believe there is no connection between the killings, according to the spokesman.

No arrests have been made and both investigations remain ongoing, the spokesman said.