A wake was held Tuesday for the bodega worker who was accidentally shot by a police officer while fleeing a gunpoint robbery in the Bronx.
The wake for Reynaldo Cuevas, 20, wrapped up just before 9 p.m. at the Ortiz Funeral Home in Washington Heights. His funeral will be held later this week in the Dominican Republic.
Cuevas aspired to join the Marines and he worked in the bodega to bring his 3-year-old daughter to the U.S. from the Dominican Republic, according to his brother.
"His dream was, he was going to get his daughter in the Dominican Republic so he could get her here so she could have a better life," said Jimmy Cuevas.
Last week, Cuevas, who had been held up at gunpoint at the bodega, frantically fled with his head down and plowed into a police officer who had his gun drawn. Cuevas and the officer tumbled to the sidewalk. The officer's gun accidentally off, killing Cuevas, according to police.
But after watching the surveillance video, the family thinks the explanation doesn't make sense.
"That's a lie," said cousin Newton Pena. "You could see on the video definitely, that it was no accident. If it was an accident, he should've tried to help him after he shot him. He didn't."
"My little boy -- they threw him on the floor," said aunt Maria Rodriguez. "I don't understand. That's no accident."
The critical question remains whether the gun was fired before or after Cuevas hit the ground.
"The issue becomes, was this a reckless act? Was the action of the police officer reckless causing the death of this young man?" said family attorney Sanford Rubenstein.
Prosecutors say they've filed murder charges against three people accused of taking part in the armed robbery.
