Shooting in Staten Island Home Depot parking lot ends with armed suspect dead, NYPD says
A shooting in a Home Depot parking lot on Staten Island early Thursday morning ended with one person dead, according to the New York City Police Department.
The NYPD said officers responded to a 911 call about a man firing a gun in the lot on Veterans Road West in the borough's Tottenville section at around 5:20 a.m. They found the 55-year-old suspect inside a Jeep and shot and killed him after he pointed a gun at them. Sources said he had been firing into the air before the officers arrived.
"Our officers ran towards gunfire and bravely confronted danger," NYPD Assistant Chief Melissa Eger said on the scene. "As they arrived, they heard multiple shots being fired. The officers exited their vehicles and encountered a 55-year-old male armed with a firearm."
Suspect called 911, sources say
The suspect made the 911 call and refused the officers' repeated commands to drop his weapon, which body camera footage shows, police sources told CBS News New York.
"Five uniformed officers discharged their firearms. The male was struck numerous times. A Smith & Wesson .38-caliber revolver was recovered from the scene," Eger said.
The man was shot in the chest four times, police sources said. First responders performed life-saving measures before he was later pronounced dead at Staten Island University Hospital.
Body camera video under review
Detectives are reviewing body camera footage and surveillance videos from the Home Depot parking lot.
"It is early, but this individual does have a documented arrest history with the police department here. But it is still early in the investigation," Eger said.
No officers were hurt, but six were evaluated at the hospital.
"It's very scary. I've been in this neighborhood so long. But one thing I love about this neighborhood, we're so protected, we're a well-knit community," said Shawn Haber, a Tottenville resident.
"It's crazy because, at 5 in the morning, there's not really that many people here if they open at 6 like they say. It's a shame that this happened," another resident said.
Authorities do not believe the man had any direct connection to the Home Depot.
Anyone with any information about the shooting is asked to call the NYPD's Crime Stoppers hotline at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477) or 1-888-57-PISTA (74782) for Spanish. You can also submit a tip via their website.