Andre Melendez

Who was Andre Melendez?

Andre Melendez, better known as Angel Melendez, was a member of the Club Kids and drug dealer who lived and worked in New York City. Melendez and his family arrived in New York from Colombia when Melendez was eight years old. Melendez became a drug dealer during the early 1990s after he met Peter Gatien, owner of the Limelight Club in New York, and became a regular dealer in Gatien's clubs. He was frequently seen at Manhattan clubs wearing his signature feathered wings.

Melendez met Michael Alig, the famed co-founder of the Club Kids and the Disco 2000 party groups. Alig became an important customer, leading Melendez to the world of the Club Kids, including James St. James and DJ Keoki. Melendez was murdered by Alig and Robert "Freez" Riggs after going to Alig's apartment to collect on a delinquent drug debt. He was hit on the head with a hammer, restrained with duct tape and either injected with or forced to drink Drano. Later his body was dismembered and dumped in the Hudson River. At first, Alig claimed it was self-defense, but later admitted to the murder.

On October 1, 1997 Michael Alig and Robert Riggs were sentenced to ten to twenty years in prison for Melendez's murder after each pleaded guilty to one count of manslaughter.