The two men whose mutilated bodies were found in a Howard Beach fire last week were killed trying to rob a group of drug dealers, cops said.
Rudy Superville, 22, and Gary Lopez, 25, both of Brooklyn, were both brutally killed after the dealers learned that the pair was planning stick them up in their Bushwick home, police said.
The dealers laid in wait for the duo to make their move.
“We believe Rudy went in first and they jumped him right away,” said NYPD Spokesman Paul Browne. “Then they told him to ‘Go out and get Gary in here.”
The killers took turns shooting, stabbing and beating Superville and Lopez, according to police. One suspect is in police custody. Rogelio Rodriguez, 34, was charged with murder, criminal possession of a weapon and criminal tampering.
“We believe they were both armed though Superville’s gun didn’t have ammo,” Browne said. “They picked the wrong dealers to rip apparently because when they got inside, their targets essentially were waiting for them. They took turns shooting, stabbing and beating them with a chair.”
Both victims suffered from trauma, stab wounds and gunshots before they died, cops said.
Superville was shot to the elbow and neck but stab wounds to his torso and neck caused him to bleed out, officials said.
Lopez suffered blunt trauma to the head, gunshot wounds to the chest, abdomen and right arm, police said. The shot to the chest was the fatal blow for Lopez, authorities said.
The men’s bodies were put in trash bags and found near 159 Avenue and 78th Street on Wednesday, cops said.
The victims’ criminal histories were not available because their records are sealed.
Cops are looking for as many as four other suspects in the homicide.
kconley@nypost.com