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Family Of Young Man Stabbed To Death Inside Bronx Car Dealership Say They Want Justice

NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- The family of a 22-year-old man who police said was stabbed to death inside a Bronx car dealership spoke to CBS2 on Tuesday.

A sister of Brandon Almonte's said she is devastated.

"He was just trying to do his job. That's all he was trying to do," she told CBS2's Lisa Rozner.

Almonte's stepfather said the young man's job was to take pictures of cars for sale at the Riverdale Chrysler Jeep dealer located on Broadway. His stepfather said after Almonte parked a car on Monday afternoon, a co-worker in the service department, 53-year-old Jose Almodovar, got upset.

Riverdale car dealership stabbing
(Photo: CBS2)

"Brandon I guess put a vehicle there where it wasn't supposed to be and they got into a confrontation, heated argument or whatever, and it was broken up," the stepfather said. "Jose was stating to other employees that, 'I'm going to kill this guy,' ya know, that he had a knife. They were aware he had a knife and what his intent was."

NYPD sources, however, disagree with that account, saying instead the suspect got upset after he saw Almonte in an employees-only area, and may not have recognized him since the victim recently transferred to the Riverdale dealership.

Police said Almodovar stabbed his co-worker multiple times in the neck at around 4:30 p.m. Other employees said the alleged stabber has a history of being confrontational.

"I don't know why they didn't get rid of him a long time ago," former co-worker Alfred Millington said.

Almonte's family told Rozner he was saving up to go to pilot school, working at the dealership and also as an Uber driver.

"He was a good kid, kept to himself, never harmed nobody," Millington said.

Almodovar is being held on murder and other charges. Almonte's family is asking witnesses to speak with police.

"We want justice for our family and for Brandon," his sister said.

When Rozner tried to speak with the supervisor at the dealership he told her it was an unfortunate situation, but couldn't comment any further.

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