In the pre-dawn hours of Black Friday, November 25, 2016, the parking lot of the Hamilton Mall in Mays Landing, New Jersey, became the scene of a fatal shooting. Demond Cottman, a 21-year-old Black male, was killed in what authorities have described as a targeted attack. The incident unfolded around 1:15 a.m. as shoppers were out for early holiday deals. Cottman's brother, Shadi, was also shot and wounded in the leg during the ambush.
The investigation into Demond Cottman's murder stretched on for years, but eventually led to charges against three men from Egg Harbor City: Steven Martinez, Timothy Davis, and Malik Boone. They were charged with murder, conspiracy to commit murder, and weapons offenses. Authorities believe the shooting was an act of retaliation. Investigators discovered that Martinez had used a GPS tracker to monitor Cottman's movements, suspecting him of a robbery that had occurred in August of that year.
Surveillance footage from the mall parking lot showed the suspects lying in wait in a vehicle before attacking the Cottman brothers as they left the mall.
The tragic story took another dark turn with the revelation of a connection to another homicide. Demond Cottman's father, Demond Tally, was shot and killed in February 2019. Steven Martinez was also implicated and charged in Tally's murder. In October 2025, Martinez pleaded guilty to two counts of aggravated manslaughter for his roles in the deaths of both Demond Cottman and Demond Tally. At the time the charges were announced in Cottman's case, Martinez and Davis were already incarcerated on other charges, while Malik Boone was considered a fugitive.
