UNSOLVED MYSTERIES

Abe Lebewohl: The Senseless Killing of a New York Deli Icon

Unsolved for over 25 years, the murder of Abe Lebewohl shocked New York in 1996

The Second Ave Deli in New York’s Lower East Side is possibly the Big Apple’s most well-known delicatessen. Famed worldwide as a hotspot for celebrities and regular Joe’s alike, it was a business built on the work, dedication, and outright love of its legendary owner, Abe Lebewohl. Standing as a prime example of the American Dream, tragedy would strike the beloved “Mayor of Second Avenue” in 1996 when he was gunned down in a robbery that remains unsolved.

Coming to America, he had witnessed the worst of humanity, and perhaps his experiences were what lay behind his legendary big heart and dedication to work, founding his own deli and pursuing the American dream. It was a dream that came true for Lebewohl, at least for a time.

Lebewohl had led a difficult life, but he’d made the most of it. Hailing originally from Ukraine, his family had been exiled to Kazakhstan and eventually fled to Poland after Abe’s father attracted the attention of the Red Army. There was no respite, however, and soon the Nazis came calling.