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From:  wonderfulkat™
Reply-To:  GoRaiders@yahoogroups.com
To:  GoRaiders@yahoogroups.com
Subject:  [GoRaiders-BAM! Right in the eye!] 'Raiderman' dies after shot from gang gunfire enters Fruitvale residence
Date:  Mon, 31 Oct 2005 17:44:30 -0000
>Wayward bullet kills man in home
>
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>'Raiderman' dies after shot from gang gunfire enters Fruitvale residence
>
>http://www.insidebayarea.com/oaklandtribune/localnews/ci_3168369
>
>FROM STAFF REPORTS
>
>OAKLAND — An Oakland Raiders follower, known to Black Hole fans as
>'Raiderman,' was shot and killed early Sunday morning while watching
>television with his mother in the living room of his Fruitvale
>district home.
>
>The bullet tore through a wall of his family's one-story green home
>and pierced his eye, killing him, police said.
>
>Police said the bullet that hit 41-year-old Larry Gamez in the head
>was an errant round from gunfire involving two groups outside his home
>in the 3600 block of East 16th Street.
>
>The area near the house is associated with gang activity and police
>investigating whether that played a role in the shooting.
>
>Whatever the reason for the shooting, police said, Gamez was an
>innocent victim.
>
>"He wasn't doing anything except minding his own business," Sgt. Lou
>Cruz said. "Whatever happened outside was an incident that wasn't even
>involving him."
>
>Gamez, who was disabled, was known for his outlandish Raiders costume
>in which he painted half of his face silver and half of it black. He
>kept pictures of himself taken at every game, posing with other fans,
>friends and Raiders cheerleaders. Several cheerleaders signed his
>photo album, calling him the number-one Raiders fan.
>
>"You could walk down the street with Larry and everyone knew him,"
>said Bob Coughlin, Gamez's brother-in-law.
>
>He was also an Oakland A's fan and rarely missed a game. His family
>described him as a kid inside of a 41-year-old'sbody and said he was
>easy to talk to.
>
>"He's the kindest person you'd ever want to meet," Gamez's nephew
>Marcus Gamez said. "He'd talk to you about anything."
>
>Advertisement
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>Along with watching sports, Gamez was also an avid bowler.
>
>He was youngest of five siblings and was close to his mother,
>comforting her after his father's death last year. The family is
>thinking about selling the home where the two lived together.
>
>Cruz said after the Sunday shooting, Gamez's mother called
>
>9-1-1 telling a dispatcher "my baby boy's been shot."
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>Gamez had fallen asleep watching television when he was hit. The
>bullet that hit him came through a wall, hit the entertainment center
>and a coffee table before hitting Gamez in the face.
>
>Other relatives were present inside, but none were hit by any gunfire
>police said.
>
>By the time police arrived, the shooters had fled and no other
>witnesses could immediately be found.
>
>It was the second time random gunfire had hit the Gamez home. Larry
>Gamez was badly shaken in May when a bullet shattered the glass window
>of the family's front door as he sat on the porch. His family said he
>never sat on the porch again after that incident.
>
>Police and Crime Stoppers of Oakland are offering up to $10,000 in
>reward money for information leading to the arrest of a suspect.
>
>
>  Anyone with information can call police at 238-3821 or Crime Stoppers
>at 238-6946.
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