Police searching for new person of interest in Waterbury mother’s death

WATERBURY, CT (WFSB) – Waterbury police are searching for a new person of interest in a mother’s murder earlier this year.

Police said 56-year-old Mabel Martinez Mercado was killed after being hit by a stray bullet in April.

The shooting happened on Orange Street on April 9.

Two homes were hit by bullets in the incident, said police.

Month’s after Martinez’s death, police identified a second person of interest.

“We believe this person has involvement in connection to that incident and we need to identify who they are so that we can ask them more questions and do more investigation on what exactly their involvement was,” said Lt. Ryan Bessette with the Waterbury Police Department.

Days after the shooting, police identified 34-year-old Levi Brock as a person of interest.

Police said they had seized the New Haven man’s car with a gun inside.

He is now facing murder and a slew of other charges.

“We worked closely with other law enforcement agencies and partners. through collaboration, we were able to gather some intelligence and identify where he was and take him into custody,” Bessette said.

Police hope to find this new person of interest quick, wanting to help Martinez’s family close the book on this painful chapter in their lives.

“We want to do everything we can to hold everyone accountable who’s responsible for this horrific incident, and that’s what we plan to do,” said Bessette.

Anyone with information on the person of interest is asked to call the Waterbury Police Department Detective Bureau at 203-574-6941 or the Crime Stoppers anonymous tip line at 203-755-1234.

Stay with Eyewitness News for updates.