Death Inside Midtown 7/Eleven; Gunman Still at Large
Reports indicate that a man who regularly asks customers for money was shot in the neck, killing him. The unidentified gunman fled, and remains at large.
7/Eleven /
| 12 Feb 2026 | 10:44
A man was shot and killed during an argument at a 7/11 on Eighth Avenue on the morning of Feb. 12, cops say. Shopping bags believed to belong to the victim can be seen on the sidewalk outside the store, which remained a crime scene hours after the shooting. (
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Police vans were still present outside the scene at around 2 p.m. on the day of the shooting. (
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A gunman shot dead another man following an argument inside a 7/Eleven convenience store in Midtown on the morning of Feb. 12, police said. The suspect fled southbound on Eighth Ave. and has not been identified or apprehended.
Police said the suspect was described as a male wearing a dark green puffer jacket, dark colored pants, and a black face mask.
Police from the Midtown South Pct and EMS responded to a 9/11 call for the shooting inside the store, located at 589 8th Ave. at W. 39th St., at around 10:27 a.m. and discovered an unidentified man dead on the scene. He had been shot in the neck.
“I know the man that was killed,” one poster on the Citizen app wrote. “Use[d] to get him coffee or food. He would hold the door open when you go in and ask for anything you can get him. May he rest in peace.”
While several sources said the victim usually held a post at the front door, in this case he was said to be inside the door and reportedly words were exchanged with the gunman. It’s unclear what triggered the argument.
A male eyewitness told amNewYork that he heard the pair exchange expletives, then saw the shooting unfold.
“I was inside for two seconds,” said the eyewitness. “I looked down. I heard an argument happening. I heard: p***y, p***y, p***y, and then the shooting.” He said he and all the other customers inside at the time turned and ran to safety outside.
Hours after the shooting, the store remained roped off, with police vans and press lingering beyond the police tape. On the ground outside the store was a grocery bag of some sort, possibly belonging to the victim.
A woman outside the store was told that a man had been shot. “Inside? I was just going to go in there,” she can be heard commenting on the Citizen app.
”Well you can’t go in there now,” another bystander informed her.
”Insane,” commented another voice.
Thomas Lane, who works at the front desk a few doors down at 589 Eighth Ave., said that “he didn’t hear any shots or anything.” He had heard sirens, however, and figured they’d be heading somewhere else.
Cops started “cordoning” off the block, Lane added. “They weren’t very forthcoming, because they were busy.” He then told all of the tenants in his building to exit out of a back door, and then shut the front entrance to his own building.