The mother of a Puerto Rican Olympian, Mabel Martinez, 56, was killed by a stray bullet in her Connecticut home on Saturday afternoon when two people opened fire outside in the street, the Waterbury Police Chief Fernando Spagnolo announced at the news conference.
Martinez was the mother of Yarimar Mercado Martinez, a rifle shooter on the Puerto Rico Olympic team. She competed in the Summer Olympics last year and in 2016.
Shootout outside the home
According to ClickOrlando, people in two cars, including a convicted felon known for drug dealing, figured in a shootout outside the home of Mabel Martinez. The dispute is unclear. A man on the street who was also involved in the confrontation was shot in the hip. He survived the shooting.
The shooting raises questions about how illegal guns get into communities and how people on parole and probation are monitored.
Mabel Martinez was an unintended victim of a drug dispute, the police officials said. No arrests were made.
The officers found 15 9-mm casings and seven caliber cases where the shootout happened. They also found the cars involved in the shooting and one of its owners. The other car owner is sought for questioning. The car owners were convicted felons and are known to have sold drugs. However, they have not been charged in connection with the shooting.
Spagnolo said that investigators believed the shooting was drug-related and had nothing to do with Mabel Martinez. He told the Associated Press that Mabel Martinez's death was a "random, tragic act of violence." She was not the intended target.
Distraught relatives
Yarimar Mercado Martinez traveled to Waterbury from Brazil on Sunday. Associated Press reports that she was supposed to compete in an international shooting competition.
In her Instagram post, she expressed her anguish, saying, "Why you? Why this way? You were sitting in your little house sewing, as you always did."
She also posted that days before her death, she called her with excitement when she asked to save the date and help her prepare for her renewal of vows in Puerto Rico.
The Olympian shooter wrote that the family intends to bring her mother's body to Puerto Rico so friends and family can bid their last goodbyes.
She also apologized to the people of Puerto Rico as she could not compete in the coming Olympics, as her place is with her family, she wrote.
Gilberto Hernández, president of the Puerto Rico Shooting Association, said that it is not yet clear when the body will arrive in Puerto Rico for the burial.
The husband, according to Spagnolo, was inconsolable. Washington Post reports that Spagnolo expressed his sympathies to the family at the news conference. He said the incident was tragic, and he could not find the words to console the family, but he vowed to work "very hard" to understand what happened and bring justice to the people responsible for the crime.
