Albany

In a span of less than two hours, one man died and another man and a 16-year-old girl were wounded Sunday in a pair of unrelated pre-dawn shootings on opposite sides of the city, police said.

Jamel Forbes, 30, was shot around 3:40 a.m. on the 400 block of South Pearl Street in the city's South End, Officer Steve Smith said. Forbes later died at Albany Medical Center Hospital, becoming the city's second homicide victim in 10 days and first this year to die from gunfire.

About 90 minutes before Forbes was killed, a 16-year-old girl from Scotia and a 20-year-old Albany man were shot in the city's West Hill neighborhood, near the corner of Elk Street and Lexington Avenue, Smith said. Both victims in that shooting, which occurred around 2:15 a.m., suffered non-life-threatening injuries and are being treated at Albany Med, the police spokesman said.

Though Sunday's shootings occurred in close succession, they are not connected, Smith said.

Not much is known about why Forbes was killed or what prompted the other shooting. As of Sunday night, no one had been arrested in connection with either incident.

"Both of the shootings are still under investigation," Smith said. "The big thing now is getting anyone with any info to come forward."

Smith said anyone with information should call detectives at 462-8039.

Sunday's shootings occurred in a pair of the city's roughest neighborhoods, where gunfire is not unfamiliar.

The block on South Pearl Street on which Forbes was killed is also where 19-year-old Nah-Cream Moore was shot and killed by police in December 2012 after cops say Moore tried to pull a gun on them during a traffic stop. In November 2011, Richard Gibbs was shot to death not far from Sunday's fatal shooting, near Fourth Avenue and South Pearl Street. Three weeks ago, two men were shot a few blocks up on South Pearl Street, near the intersection of Herkimer Street.

Sunday's 2:15 a.m. shooting in West Hill occurred a couple blocks from a number of recent shootings, including the fatal December 2013 killing of Chico Morton near First Street and Lexington Avenue.

People walking by both scenes Sunday declined to speak to a reporter, either saying they didn't know anything or were fearful.

The 16-year-old girl and 20-year-old man shot were not identified.

Not much is known about Forbes. According to state records and news archives, four years ago Forbes had a run-in with police not far from where he was killed that led to prison time.

According to news archives, in 2010, Forbes was arrested after cops said he stole two pit bulls at gunpoint on Clinton Street, led police on a foot chase through the South End, kicked the door into a Second Avenue home and refused to let a teenager inside that home leave.

While being booked for that 2010 arrest, police said they found a handcuff key tied to a string in Forbes' throat. Forbes was paroled four months ago, in November 2013, after serving time for robbery, according to Department of Corrections and Community Supervision records.

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