In the late hours of a Thursday in March, the hum of the city of Hartford was pierced by the sound of gunfire. On March 5, 2020, inside an apartment on Farmington Avenue, a young Black/African American man named Andre Keene, 21 years old, was shot. The incident triggered a shot spotter activation, and Hartford Police were dispatched to the scene. First responders found Keene and rushed him to St. Francis Hospital, but his injuries were too severe.
He was pronounced dead in the early morning hours of the following day.
Investigators from the Hartford Police Department's Major Crimes and Crime Scene Division immediately began to piece together the events of that tragic night. They quickly determined that the shooting was not a random act of violence, but rather a targeted attack, assuring the public that there was no broader threat. Their investigation moved swiftly, and in less than a day, a suspect was in custody.
The man arrested in connection with Andre Keene's death was identified as Diomar Mendoza. He was held on a $1 million bond. In a testament to the efficiency of the police work, the weapon used in the homicide was recovered within 14 hours of the incident. It was also determined that Mendoza did not have a valid pistol permit. The days following the arrest were fraught with emotion. During Mendoza's arraignment in Hartford Superior Court, tensions boiled over, and a fight broke out between two families outside the courtroom, leading to several arrests and the use of pepper spray by a court marshal.
