While the family of 1980s kingpin-turned-federal informant Alberto “Alpo” Martinez is grieving his death, the family of Rich Porter is celebrating.
Martinez, who was portrayed by Cam’ron in the 2002 movie Paid In Full, was fatally shot six times as he sat in his Dodge Ram around 3:20 am on Halloween on the intersection of Frederick Douglass Blvd near west 152nd street in Harlem. Martinez killed Porter in 1990, so when his death was announced, they had no sympathy. A 37-year-old woman who identified herself as Porter’s niece told the New York Daily News that his death sparked a joyous celebration.
“We waited for a long time for this day to come and we are happy. That’s why we’re out here celebrating, drinking champagne,” the woman, named Lorell, said. “Everybody’s reaction right now is celebrating. It’s a celebration for Harlem, period. Not even my family.”
Lorell said Martinez’s killing is justice for what he admittedly did to Porter over the decades ago.
“Now my uncle can finally rest in peace, 32 years later,” she added. “It’s just that the pain my mother felt all these years, I been feeling the pain with her.”
She didn’t have an ounce of condolences for the Martinez family.
“Every dog has their day and today was his,” she continued. “I believe in karma, and I’m glad that I was here to witness it.”
Martinez was released into the witness protection program in 2015, and took on the identity of Abraham Rodriguez of Lewiston, Maine. Despite being looked down upon for being an informant in order to avoid a life sentence, Martinez still visited Harlem.
In a 2020 interview on YouTube, Martinez spoke about why he became a federal informant and turned in people who worked in his own drug trafficking organization:
“I’m not promoting being a rat, being a government witness. I’m promoting you get locked up, you do what you gotta do. Because the code of the streets, that’s where you gonna get poked up. I didn’t live by that code. So where the code at? I need the rule book,” he said in the video. “For the youth: I’m not promoting being a rat, I’m not promoting being the biggest thug in the streets. I’m promoting do what you gotta do, and be the best at it.
