The mourning family of a 24-year-old man shot in front of a Queens deli feels like a “nuclear weapon” was dropped on them — seven years after the victim’s mom died of cancer when he was just a teen.
Lawrence Turner was gunned down during an argument with his killer outside MB Convenience Deli & Grill on Beach 14th St. near New Haven Ave. in Far Rockaway at about 6:40 p.m. Tuesday, cops said. He was the last reported 2025 homicide victim in the city.
“It’s like 2025 dropped a nuclear weapon on this family before it left,” the victim’s aunt, 60-year-old Dawn Edwards, told the Daily News. “Everyone is trying to pick up the pieces and figure out what happened and why.”
Turner lived in Brownsville, Brooklyn, but grew up the youngest of five children, including a brother and two sisters, in Far Rockaway, his family said.
Shot in the back and arm, he made his way by private means to St. John’s Episcopal Hospital, less than half a mile from the scene.
“He was born in St. John’s Hospital, the same hospital he passed in,” said Nicole Boney, the victim’s godmother.
Turner had no criminal history in the city, police said. His killer has not been caught.
Tragedy befell Turner’s family in 2018, when his mother succumbed to cancer.
“He took it extremely hard,” Edwards said. “He was the baby. He was trying hard to find his way and get his footing after his mom died.”
With his mother gone, Turner was raised in large part by his eldest sister, his aunt said.
“I don’t think anyone is more shattered (than her). Everybody’s broken, but she is just. … She’s not speaking much,” Edwards said of that sister.
Another sister shared her grief in a Facebook post on Wednesday.
“God why would you take my mom and my baby brother,” that sister posted.
Instead of breaking the young man’s spirit, his mother’s death inspired Turner to share his story with the world — a dream cut short by his killer’s bullets, his godmother said.
“He was passionate about writing, and he wanted to write a book about his life one day, especially after his mom passed,” said Boney. “He was really passionate about writing about how things went for him after her death, and how his life went, and just to write about his life story.”
A portly baby, Turner’s infant chubbiness earned him an enduring nickname, his aunt explained
“We called him Buddha, and it just stuck,” said Edwards. “‘Cause he was like the Buddha, a big chunky baby, round, big cheeks.
As their youngest uncle, Turner’s nieces and nephews worshiped him.
“Everything is ‘Uncle Buddha, Uncle Buddha!’ He’s their world and vice versa,” said Edwards. “Their children are his children. He was so close with his nephews and nieces. I’m going through my own thing, but my heart bleeds for them.”
“(The shooter) just took it all away,” she added. “It feels like this family can’t catch a break.”
Turner played basketball and boxed at a community center in Far Rockaway, according to his godmother.
“He used to talk about wanting to be a boxer,” said Boney.
Boney last saw her godson at a birthday party her family threw for her in November.
“Thank God I was able to see him,” she said. “Everybody is very distraught. He was the one to call and connect everyone. He kept the family together since his mom passed.”
The victim was the last of four people murdered in Far Rockaway’s 101st Precinct in 2025 — the same number as were killed in 2024. Citywide, homicides were down 20% in 2025 compared with the year before.
The precinct saw 13 people shot in 2025 through Dec. 28, compared with 18 by that point last year, a 28% drop.
The suspect in Turner’s slaying is described as Hispanic and was wearing a black bubble jacket, gray jeans and black-and-white Air Jordans.
