Two people have been arrested days after a 22-year-old man was brazenly shot and killed inside a hibachi restaurant in Brockton, Massachusetts, officials announced Monday night.
Citing an "around-the-clock investigation," Plymouth County District Attorney Timothy J. Cruz announced the arrests Monday night in connection with Joe Araujo's shooting death Friday night at Hibachi Sushi Supreme Buffet on Crescent Street.
The men, whose names were not released, are scheduled to be arraigned in Brockton District Court on Tuesday. Officials didn't say what charges they are facing.
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Araujo's family told NBC10 Boston earlier Monday that they were searching for answers after their loved one was gunned down, leaving them shocked and heartbroken. The 22-year-old leaves behind two children.
“It’s been like hell. Nothing could take this pain away,” his sister Andrea Monteiro said.
As the family started to plan his funeral, they were left wondering who could do such a thing, vowing to find justice.
"Who did this to my son?" Ana Inocencio said. "He has to pay. Sooner or later he has to pay."
The entire incident was caught on surveillance video, which the district attorney’s office released on Saturday with a warning for graphic content.
The video shows the brazen gunman walk right up to the victim's table, pull out a gun and shoot Araujo at point blank range before fleeing. There were families with children inside at the time, and the video shows their mad dash to safety.
"This video just replays in my head over and over and over," Monteiro said, telling us she forced herself to watch the video of her younger brother's final moments one time. "Something that I can never get out my head. Ever."
The district attorney's office had said they believed Araujo was targeted by the suspect who was wearing a mask at the time of the shooting.
"I just don’t understand why," Vera Lopes said of the shooting that claimed her brother's life.
"He was loved by many," Monteiro added.
The grieving family was hoping someone would see the video and help them get justice.
“I just want you to come forward, even if you don’t give a name, even if you drop a letter in one of our mailboxes, anything, any little hint, we’ll take it,” Monteiro said before the arrests were announced. "We're gonna get justice. We're gonna find who this person is. Even if we stay awake day and night and we don't get rest, we're gonna find the killer."
Police said Friday that officers responded to the Crescent Street restaurant around 7:25 p.m. and found one victim with life-threatening injuries. The man was taken to Good Samaritan Hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
The victim was identified on Saturday as Araujo, of Brockton. The district attorney's office had said this was not a random act of violence.
Witnesses told NBC10 Boston on Friday that a man with a mask walked in and opened fire on someone inside the restaurant. Araujo was the only person injured in the shooting.
Police were seen outside the restaurant on Friday searching a vehicle with yellow crime scene tape wrapped around it, but so far no information has been released on its relevance.
The sushi restaurant is located in a strip mall, right next to a furniture store, a Dollar Tree store and some other restaurants. People nearby say it's generally a safe area.
"This plaza is super busy usually, and it's pretty safe," said Satish Patel, of Brockton Liquors. "I have never worried about it. Until like 10 o'clock at night it's pretty safe."
An investigation is active and ongoing by state and local police.
