Prologue: A Death in Times Square
Times Square
December 7, 1980
Joey Watts was a man in desperate need of money.
A problem gambler, he owed a not insignificant amount of money to the Gambino family.
Lately, the Bergin crew, headed by rising star John Gotti, had been getting impatient with his excuses.
Not wanting to sleep with the fishes, Watts had tried to get money legally. Unfortunately, it just wasn't enough.
Because of this, he felt he had no choice but to turn to... less legal means of getting the cash to pay his debts. Deciding to take up mugging, he bought a gun and started prowling some of New York City's seedier neighborhoods.
So you see, this was not a hardened criminal. This was a man backed into a corner whose fear outweighed his scruples.
On this particular "patrol", he had found what he thought was a likely target. A somewhat heavyset young man with dark hair, he had the air of a tourist.
And he was alone.
Following the young man through the streets, Watts began closing the distance between them. Once he felt he was close enough, he made sure there weren't people nearby who might possibly intervene.
Then he reached into his jacket and pulled out his gun, pointing it at the visiting man's back.
As he was getting ready to voice his demands, a car alarm sounded nearby.
Though Watts had a basic idea of how to use a gun, his trigger discipline was poor. He was also jumpy.
Bad combination.
As the sound of the gunshot reverberated, the mugger's target fell down. Watts' bullet had penetrated his heart. If he wasn't already dead, he would be very soon.
Realizing the gravity of what had just happened, Watts fled. While he would be leaving empty-handed, it was better than being seen rummaging over the corpse - at least in his mind.
And so the dead man lay where he fell, until his corpse was found by a young couple on their way home from attending a double feature at a porno theater, and later identified by the authorities.
In life, the man had been a refugee camp worker in Arkansas, a religious college student in Georgia, and a security guard in Hawaii.
But in death, Mark David Chapman was just another victim of one of the Big Apple's nasty worms.
December 7, 1980
Joey Watts was a man in desperate need of money.
A problem gambler, he owed a not insignificant amount of money to the Gambino family.
Lately, the Bergin crew, headed by rising star John Gotti, had been getting impatient with his excuses.
Not wanting to sleep with the fishes, Watts had tried to get money legally. Unfortunately, it just wasn't enough.
Because of this, he felt he had no choice but to turn to... less legal means of getting the cash to pay his debts. Deciding to take up mugging, he bought a gun and started prowling some of New York City's seedier neighborhoods.
So you see, this was not a hardened criminal. This was a man backed into a corner whose fear outweighed his scruples.
On this particular "patrol", he had found what he thought was a likely target. A somewhat heavyset young man with dark hair, he had the air of a tourist.
And he was alone.
Following the young man through the streets, Watts began closing the distance between them. Once he felt he was close enough, he made sure there weren't people nearby who might possibly intervene.
Then he reached into his jacket and pulled out his gun, pointing it at the visiting man's back.
As he was getting ready to voice his demands, a car alarm sounded nearby.
Though Watts had a basic idea of how to use a gun, his trigger discipline was poor. He was also jumpy.
Bad combination.
As the sound of the gunshot reverberated, the mugger's target fell down. Watts' bullet had penetrated his heart. If he wasn't already dead, he would be very soon.
Realizing the gravity of what had just happened, Watts fled. While he would be leaving empty-handed, it was better than being seen rummaging over the corpse - at least in his mind.
And so the dead man lay where he fell, until his corpse was found by a young couple on their way home from attending a double feature at a porno theater, and later identified by the authorities.
In life, the man had been a refugee camp worker in Arkansas, a religious college student in Georgia, and a security guard in Hawaii.
But in death, Mark David Chapman was just another victim of one of the Big Apple's nasty worms.
