NEW YORK (1010 WINS/WCBS 880) -- An NYPD officer was shot in the arm through the windshield of a police car in the Bronx early Tuesday, police said as they searched for two suspects.
It all started just after 3 a.m. as two uniformed officers approached two males in an unmarked police vehicle at Prospect Avenue and East 183rd Street in the Tremont section.
“As they pull up, at least one male fires at least six times, striking the windshield and our officer, who was seated in the passenger seat,” NYPD Chief James Essig said at a press conference Tuesday morning.
“Before they even have a chance to exit their car, shots are fired at their vehicle,” Essig said.
Both officers got out of the vehicle and returned fire, the chief said.
The area is a known gang location, and officers from the 48th Precinct quickly responded to the scene.
One of the males, 16, was apprehended after a brief foot pursuit. A .32 caliber gun was found on him, according to Essig, who said six .32 caliber shell casings were recovered at the scene.
Shortly before the foot pursuit, at least two shots were fired from 760 East 183rd St. in the direction of the shooting scene. It’s unclear who these shots were targeting, but police don’t believe they were directed at the officers.
In addition to the male who was with the 16-year-old suspect, police are also searching for a second male who they believe fired the two shots from a .380 caliber at 760 East 183rd St. He fled in a car, police said.
The wounded officer was rushed by patrol car to St. Barnabas Hospital, where he was in stable condition.
Mayor Eric Adams and NYPD Commissioner Keechant Sewell visited him at the hospital.
“Let me be clear, we will stop at nothing to ensure that these subjects involved in this shooting and the people who drive violence in this city will be brought to justice,” Sewell said.
Adams lamented that “too many young people have too many guns in their hands.”
“Our job is to create a pathway to stop that and to ensure that we remove these guns off our streets,” the mayor said. “Thank God [the injured officer] will be going home, but too many innocent people don’t go home after encountering gun violence.”
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