Alberto “Alpo” Martinez, a drug kingpin who was portrayed by Cam’ron in the 2002 movie “Paid In Full,” was killed in a drive-by shooting as he sat in his 2017 Dodge Ram at 147th Street and Frederick Douglass Boulevard around 3.30am, cops said. He was shot five times.Martinez, whose last known address was in Maine, was rushed to Harlem Hospital but couldn’t be saved. A high-ranking police source said Martinez was in danger as soon as he returned to his old stomping ground.“You were in the witness protection program because you testified against other drug dealers,” the source said.“You’d make a lot of enemies who have a score to settle,” the source said. “When you return to the same area, word will get out very fast. He’s back in the zone.”The source, who said Martinez’s vehicle had paper plates from Texas, said it wasn’t clear if Martinez had left witness protection entirely or was just back for a visit.Photos from the scene showed his bullet-ridden, red truck.“It seems pretty intentional when you shoot somebody five times,” a police source said. There were no immediate arrests.Born on June 8, 1966, Alpo Martinez was raised in East Harlem, New York.At the age of 13, Martinez reportedly got involved in the business of selling drugs. He quickly rose up the chain in Harlem, becoming one of the city’s biggest dealers.He later relocated to Washington DC, where he expanded his operations and met the man who would later become his bodyguard and alleged hit man.On November 7, 1991, Martinez was arrested in Washington for selling drugs.Among his charges were drugs, conspiracy to commit murder, and 14 counts of murder. To lower his sentence, Martinez became an informant and testified against the people in his circle.Martinez was given a sentence of 35 years in prison, and was reportedly released in 2015 to the federal witness protection program.“Paid in Full” was based on the story of Martinez and his partners Rich Porter and Azie Faison.He was profiled on a 2012 episode of the TV series “Gangsters: America’s Most Evil” and name-checked by numerous rappers, including Nas in “Memory Lane (Sittin’ In Da Park)” and songs by Drake, Jay-Z and 50 Cent.— New York Post, The Sun
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