20 years later, gangland-style Lynn murder remains mystery to Lynn police

This is the seventh story in a series about cold cases in the city of LynnLYNN – James Marks was a gambling man.He owned a stake in a horse, dabbled in the strip club business and led a lifestyle that police say undoubtedly led to his execution-style death on Feb. 20, 1991.”Whoever shot him was lying in wait and ambushed him,” said Lynn Police Captain Mark O’Toole. “It was definitely a hit.”He had just returned home that evening from a trip to Maine and was fishing for his apartment keys, when someone dressed all in black snuck up and shot him in the head and stomach. Marks, 50, collapsed in a heap on the front steps of his Broad Street apartment, motionless in a pool of blood.O’Toole said few clues turned up at the scene, aside from sneaker imprints in the dirt and a vague description from witnesses. The weapon thought to have been used in the attack was a double-barrel,sawed-off shotgun,which O’Toole said was fired at close range.”The suspect jum-ped over a fence (located behind the apartment building leading to Nahant Place) and disappeared,”he said. “A witness in the third- floor apartment yelled out to a person that he thought was breaking into cars, described him as 5-feet, 8-inches, average size, but that was the onlydescription.”O’Toole said Marks led a fairly mysterious life, had a criminal record and didn’t have steady employment. He lived alone on the third floor of his building, which also houses dentist David Samost’s office.”He was a fun-loving, wonderful guy,” said Marks’ niece, Darlene Finnigan. “But he wasn’t an angel either. He liked his money and he liked to party.”Finnigan, who was 26 at the time of the murder, recalled being in a local bar when news of the incident was broadcast on TV.”I just thought, he’s such a prankster, this can’t be true?he can’t be dead,” she said. “But he was, and I had to identify his body. It was awful, I’ll never forget it.”Marks grew up in Lynn and previously lived in South Boston. Not much is known about his acquaintances, enemies or anyone that he had a relationship with. Finnigan, who called Marks a “wheeler and dealer,” said he would argue with people about drugs and gambling, but couldn’t think of anyone who would have wanted him dead.”We don’t have anything about his daily activities or who he had problems with that would have led to him being a target for murder,” O’Toole said. “But he apparently got someone angry enough that they waited to murder him.”Marks’ death happened during a particularly bloody year for Lynn, where a total of 12 murders took place.”It was the height of the crack epidemic and a dangerous time for the city,” O’Toole said. “It’s been 20 years since this happened, so we’re hopeful that someone that knows something will come forward and lead us to whomever is responsible.”Anyone with information on this cold case is urged to contact the police at 781-595-2000. Anonymous tips can also be submitted by texting the word tiplynn and the information to tip411 or 847411. In addition, tips can be submitted through the department’s website, www.lynnpolice.org and clicking on the submit tip icon.