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Plainclothes Cop Shoots Man Who Allegedly Tried To Rob Him With BB Gun
By
Emma Whitford
Published Nov 9, 2015
Modified Jul 24, 2017
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By
Emma Whitford
Published Nov 9, 2015
Modified Jul 24, 2017
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A plainclothes NYPD detective shot a 20-year-old robbery suspect in the right arm and torso in Bed-Stuy on Sunday evening, after the suspect allegedly pulled a realistic-looking BB gun on him and told him to hand over his possessions. The suspect is currently in stable condition.
According to the NYPD, three detectives were assigned to investigate a robbery that occurred earlier Sunday afternoon in the 88th Precinct, which covers Fort Greene and Clinton Hill. The shooting took place on the corner of Monroe Street and Bedford Avenue, in neighboring Bed-Stuy. NBC reports that officers had been alerted to a Craigslist scam in the 88th—multiple unsuspecting apartment hunters had responded to a listing, only to be robbed upon arrival.
The three plainclothes detectives were near the corner of Bedford and Monroe around 6:40 p.m. on Sunday, and were approached by three male suspects, according to the NYPD. The 20-year-old suspect allegedly displayed a weapon, which was described in an initial police report as a "firearm," and asked the undercover officer to hand over his possessions. The officer fired his own gun, striking the suspect in his right arm and torso. He was taken to Kings County Hospital in custody, and listed in stable condition.
"It was sort of terrifying," one witness told the NY Times. "I definitely remember the guy screaming over and over and over again, ‘Oh my God, I’ve been shot!’"
The robbery suspect's firearm was later revealed to be a Daisy Powerline 415 BB gun.
A 16-year-old male suspect was also arrested on the scene. A third suspect, likely between the ages of 16 and 18, fled the scene on foot and remains at large.
The NYPD has yet to confirm whether the three young men the detectives encountered in Bed-Stuy were involved in the Craigslist scam allegedly taking place in a neighboring precinct.
"The initial robbery did have a Craigslist element to it," NYPD Chief of Brooklyn Detectives Patrick Conry told CBS. "Very early on in the investigation, we don’t know if the males that were apprehended here are connected with the initial robbery complaint."
An investigation into the incident is ongoing, and charges are pending.
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