The brother of a pot dealer slain in a drive-by shooting yesterday fingered a reputed drug boss in the killing – but also admitted on the witness stand that he’s told so many lies, he can’t remember them all.
Steven Thompson, 33, told a Brooklyn federal jury he glimpsed Emile Dixon’s face as Dixon pulled up in a black car on July 26, 2000, on Linden Boulevard in Brooklyn and opened fire.
Displaying a lump on his neck where a bullet lodged just below the skin, Thompson showed federal jurors how close he came to death in the shooting.
But under cross-examination, Thompson admitted having given authorities inaccurate statements.
“I was angry because my brother died,” Thompson explained to defense lawyer Ephraim Savitt.
Prosecutors say Robert Thompson was slain to keep him from testifying against one of Dixon’s pals about another shooting.
Dixon, 32, is on trial for his life. Brooklyn feds recommended against the death penalty in his case because Steven Thompson made a poor witness, but Attorney General John Ashcroft overrode them.
Dixon – alleged leader of the Brooklyn-based “Patio Crew” – is also accused of killing a rival drug dealer who’d infringed on his turf.