SLAIN ON EVE OF BABY BIRTH
Granddad innocent vic
Police believe the bystander killed by a stray bullet outside his son’s upper Manhattan deli this week was the innocent victim of a gang-related beef — and he would have seen his grandchild born had he lived one more day, law-enforcement sources and family friends said.
Reda Girgis — a 66-year-old from Egypt who was visiting the Big Apple to see his son and pregnant daughter-in-law — was shot dead outside the ChopCheese Deli 2 in Washington Heights at around 7:10 p.m. Tuesday, according to cops and the store manager.
Girgis was standing next to his pregnant daughter-in-law when he was struck in the head by a bullet from a drive-by killer, sources said.
The shot was likely intended for a gang rival, sources said. But it took out a man who was just one day away from being a new grandfather: His daughterin-law gave birth Wednesday, two friends of the family said.
“She saw what happened, and the next day she went to the hospital to give birth to the baby,” one friend, who gave his name as Sam, said Thursday.
The six-block area around the scene at West 162nd Street and Broadway has an extensive history of gang violence, according to the sources.
Investigators believe the round came from a dark gray SUV, possibly an Audi with New Jersey plates, sources said.
Video obtained by The Post shows Girgis on the phone outside the deli when he tumbles to the ground. A group of teenagers who had been hanging outside are seen scrambling for safety just moments before Girgis falls to the sidewalk — with his son’s wife running into the store a second later.
“I heard noise like firecrackers,” deli manager Gamal Abouelezz told The Post on Wednesday. “All of a sudden I saw the man land on the floor.
“The man who died is the father of the owner,” Abouelezz said. “He came from Egypt to visit him three days ago . . . . He was here to celebrate the baby.”
He said the victim’s son, Haney Girgis, was not in the store at the time.
Reda Girgis “was standing outside on the phone,” Abouelezz said. “His daughter-inlaw came, and they talked together. She was in the store dropping off groceries. All of a sudden I saw him shot. I saw the man die on [the security camera] TV.”
A heart-wrenching second video shot by a resident shows a man identified by a source as Girgis’ son trying desperately to get to his father’s body on the sidewalk, only to be held back by police officers.
Relative Nady Girgis said that Reda — whom he described as a nice, friendly man — was survived by four kids: two in New York and two in Egypt.
His death has left his son in shambles, he said: “He saw him lying on the ground. He’s not good. We are trying to help him get better. It’s really hard.”
Investigators spoke with two men believed to be the intended targets, but they were unable to provide any information, according to the sources. No arrests have been made.