In the early hours of a Wednesday morning, on August 19, 2020, the life of 30-year-old Irvin Payne was cut short in a sudden act of violence. At approximately 3:10 a.m. in the Harlem neighborhood of Manhattan, Payne was standing outside the Savoy Park Apartments on Lenox Avenue when a white vehicle approached. A gunman from inside the car opened fire, striking Payne in the face.
Emergency services rushed him to a nearby hospital, but his injuries proved to be fatal.
A resident of the Bronx, Payne was a father to a young daughter and was reportedly visiting relatives in Harlem at the time of the shooting. His family was left reeling, struggling to comprehend the motive behind the attack. While his loved ones remembered him as a doting father, investigators noted that Payne had a history of arrests, including for gang assault and robbery.
More than a year after the fatal shooting, the investigation led to arrests. On September 17, 2021, authorities took 21-year-old Freddy Polanco, a resident of the Bronx, into custody in Yonkers. He was subsequently charged with murder, gun possession, and criminal use of a firearm. The following month, on October 28, 2021, a second suspect was arrested within the 32nd Precinct in Manhattan. Michael Soriano, 23, also from the Bronx, faced charges of murder, criminal use of a firearm, and criminal possession of a weapon. The arrests marked significant progress in a case that had remained open for over a year.
