Malcolm Jakobe Lewis, left, is facing a murder charge in the death of 25-year-old Daniel Abdelmalak in the parking lot of a used car dealership in Houston, police say. According to cops, Lewis and another man were arguing with Abdelmalak and his father who owned the dealership about pricing when one of the men shot the victim. (Lewis photo via the Houston Police Department; Abdelmalak picture from his obituary)
A suspect is behind bars after an argument over pricing led to the fatal shooting of a used car dealership employee in Houston, according to police.
Malcolm Jakobe Lewis, 20, was arrested on a murder charge. Houston police officers responded around 1:25 p.m. Oct. 16 to a call about a shooting at Star Motor Company on the city’s southeast side. When they arrived, the found a man identified in court records as 25-year-old Daniel Abdelmalak suffering from gunshot wounds in the parking lot. Houston Fire Department paramedics pronounced him dead on the scene.
Detectives later learned Lewis and another man were having an argument with Abdelmalak and his father over a business transaction, police said. Lewis and the other began assaulting Abdelmalak and his father before one of the suspects pulled out a gun and shot Abdelmalak several times, police said in a press release issued Monday.
The suspects then drove away.
Family members told local CBS affiliate KHOU that Abdelmalak was protecting his father when he was shot. KHOU reporter Jason Miles described the scene in a post on X, the website formally known as Twitter, as emotional with family members giving each other tearful hugs.
Emotional scene at this service station on Fuqua near Beamer. I’m hearing cries and seeing hugs. Hearing there was a dispute between owner and customers. Updates on @KHOU. What we know now: https://t.co/7d6HQiz8kc #khou11 pic.twitter.com/GkYrvnY8HT
— Jason Miles (@JMilesKHOU) October 16, 2023
Lewis turned himself in Friday at the Houston Police Department headquarters and admitted to his role in the shooting, the press release said. Police didn’t release any details about the second suspect.
According to court records, Lewis was indicted Oct. 11 for an unrelated July robbery with bodily harm.
Tributes poured in on Abdelmalak’s Facebook page.
“What to say from the first time we met we clicked. You were a beautiful soul I’ll miss our deep conversations about life after everyone got off for the night,” one person wrote.
His family has a GoFundMe page set up so people can donate to Archangel Raphael Church in Abdelmalak’s honor. So far it’s raised about $7,000.
“Their wish is for his giving spirit to live on infectiously through us all,” the page said.
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