Family speaks out after mugging leaves John Sarquiz dead in Brooklyn
NEW YORK - Police are searching for a suspect who viciously beat a man to death in Brooklyn.
His grieving sister said that money appeared to be the motive for the attack.
A budding memorial grows on the corner of a Dyker Heights neighborhood, where 55-year-old John Sarquiz was brutally beaten to death.
Neighbors knew him as a character with a unique sense of humor – but above all, a devoted son.
"Just plain nice. That's all he was, and he didn't deserve what he got," said Dave Khoury.
Police say Sarquiz was standing outside Dean Mini Market last Wednesday night when a suspect knocked him unconscious, leaving him with severe head trauma. His devastated sister Christina says the assailant then robbed her brother, stealing money from his wallet.
"It's unfathomable. We cannot make any sense of it. Rob somebody, injure somebody, take their money, but you don't have to brutally completely destroy them," said Christina Sarquiz, the victim's sister.
John Sarquiz remained on life support for several days before dying.
He was especially close to his 80-year-old mother, promising his father who passed away in 2014 he would always take care of her.
"She was everything to him, and he was everything to her. And he really did make that promise, and keep that promise. I feel like this criminal has robbed them of that ability to be together, for him to fulfill that promise to my father," Christina Sarquiz said.
Police have not made an arrest, but the family says detectives know who the suspect is.
"This week has been completely surreal for myself and my family. We spent as much time bedside as we could," Christina Sarquiz said. "My brother was a really lovable, simple man."
He meant the world to his family and friends
Anyone with any information is asked to call the NYPD's Crime Stoppers hotline at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477), or for Spanish, 1-888-57-PISTA (74782). You can also submit a tip via their website or via DM on Twitter, @NYPDTips. All calls are kept confidential.