US News

CALL TO EX BY VILLAGE MURDERER A MYSTERY

An hour before mad gunman David Garvin killed a restaurant worker and two auxiliary cops in the Village, he called his ex-wife and casually chatted about their kids – but gave no clue he would soon embark on a bloody rampage, police said.

“He was concerned because one of them was about to have eye surgery,” said a law-enforcement source. “The conversation was very mundane. He didn’t say anything that would explain his motives.”

The call to his second wife, Donna Smith – who lives in Bullhead City, Ariz., with their two children – is one of several leads cops followed as they searched for a motive behind the rampage.

One clue is lost to cops: They don’t know what Garvin said to barman Alfredo Romero Morales before pumping 15 bullets into his back.

“He mumbled something,” said the law-enforcement source. “The customers didn’t hear what he said.”

Crowds yesterday flocked to the eatery where Garvin began his shooting spree – after it reopened for the first time since that fateful night.

A benefit was held at De Marco’s pizzeria for Morales, who served as a waiter, bartender and part-time chef.

“Today’s reopening shows the strength of the New York people,” said Barbara Gilhooley, who bought the first two slices with her husband, Eugene.

brad.hamilton@nypost.com