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Usman Pirzada, age 21, was shot to death Tuesday, Dec. 19, in Schenectady’s Hamilton Hill neighborhood, according to police.
Pirzada was found shortly before 9 p.m. near Lincoln Avenue and Steuben Street suffering from a gunshot wound.
He was taken to Albany Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead hours later, Schenectady Police said.
Detectives found several shell casings at the scene, which was located yards from the Martin Luther King Jr. School of Excellence.
On Wednesday, Dec. 20, police arrested two 18-year-old suspects in connection with Pirzada’s killing.
Jevoun Drake, of Schenectady, was charged with second-degree murder, robbery with a firearm, and criminal possession of a weapon, all felonies.
Jose Amey, of Troy, was charged with one count of robbery.
Both men were being held at the Schenectady County jail.
Investigators did not say whether the suspects knew Pirzada.
Police are asking anyone with information in the case to contact detectives at 518-788-6566.
Meanwhile, news of the killing sparked a wave of online tributes for Pirzada, who graduated from Schenectady High School and was studying to become a pilot at Schenectady Community College.
"He was truly one of the kindest, most positive people I’ve ever met in my life, and there will never be another quite like him," Liv Murphy said on Facebook.
"I’ll miss your smile that could light up a room and your energy that made anyone who met you love you instantly."
“My heart is hurting so much right now,” Luis Torres said on Facebook. “Always a smile on his face even when he was missing a tooth. This happened too soon to you.”
Funeral services for Pirzada had not been publicized as of Friday, Dec. 22.
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