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NYPD: Officer shot, injured knife-wielding woman during ‘chaotic’ night at Queens home
By
Ryan Kost
Published Oct 24, 2026 at 8:35 a.m. ET
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Mindaugas Dulinskas/Getty Images
By
Ryan Kost
Published Oct 24, 2026 at 8:35 a.m. ET
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An NYPD officer shot and wounded a woman Friday night after she approached police with a knife during a night of violence at a Queens home, police said.
The woman, who police have not yet identified, is in stable condition, the NYPD said.
Officials say police responded to calls of a home invasion and stabbing on 149th Street at around 9:40 Friday night. When officers arrived, no one answered the door but two men came to a second-floor window. One was injured, police said, and told officers his uncle had stabbed him and was downstairs.
Eventually, a woman on the third floor, who told police she too was afraid to go downstairs, threw keys out a window, NYPD Chief of Patrol Philip Rivera said during a press briefing.
Police said they heard screaming as they entered and were climbing the stairs. They found two men and a woman struggling in a small bedroom on the third floor in a “chaotic scene.” After officers identified themselves, they ordered the three to raise their hands. The two men complied, but the woman began moving toward the officers with the knife, Rivera said.
“The female still did not comply and moved in the direction of the officers with a knife in her hand,” Rivera told reporters. “She was within several feet of the officers when an officer discharged his firearm, striking her. She fell to the ground. An officer deployed his taser, and another officer recovered the knife.”
Rivera said officers carried the woman downstairs and gave her first aid.
The woman had stab wounds, as did three men in the home, according to police. They were all taken to local hospitals but police didn’t specify their conditions.
Rivera said police don’t believe the wounded woman was responsible for the home invasion or the initial stabbing reported in the 911 calls. The people in the home knew each other, he said, but police weren’t sure how they were related.
Investigators recovered two knives at the scene. The shooting was captured on officers’ body-worn cameras and is being investigated by the NYPD’s Force Investigation Division.
The circumstances of the stabbings and what happened inside the home before officers arrived remain under investigation.
This story is based on preliminary information provided by the NYPD and may be updated.
Tagged
nypd
public safety
queens
Ryan Kost
Ryan Kost is a reporter on the day-of news desk, where he covers breaking news and writes enterprise stories about jails, courts, prosecutors and government accountability. His work focuses on the public institutions that shape life in New York. Before joining the newsroom, he lead a multi-part investigation with Columbia Journalism Investigations and New York Focus into how New York prosecutors handle wrongful conviction claims. He's also been a staff writer at The San Francisco Chronicle, The Associated Press and The Oregonian. Got a tip? Signal: ryankost.20
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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