NYPD officer shot, suspect dead after standoff in Brooklyn, city officials say

A police officer was shot while responding to a report of a man barricaded inside a Brooklyn home Friday, according to city officials.

The suspect who barricaded himself has died, officials say.

"Put his life on the line"

The NYPD said they responded to the scene at 190 Kosciusko St. in Bedford-Stuyvesant at 5:45 a.m. They heard gunshots and tried to speak to the man inside, identified as 48-year-old Lamin Simmons.

"After receiving no response, they made entry into the location, where they observed a male holding a firearm," NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch said.

Police called the Emergency Service Unit (ESU) and hostage negotiation units for support. Simmons' wife and son were able to safely evacuate, but an elderly couple was unable to exit.

Hostage negotiators and Simmons' family spent two hours trying to establish a dialogue, according to the police commissioner, as Simmons continued to fire off rounds.

Tisch said Simmons started throwing large items out of the window at 8:30 a.m., including a microwave, a lamp, pots and pans. When officers went inside again, around 8:50 a.m., they found him by his elderly neighbors' door armed with a gun.

Tisch said Simmons fired his gun at officers, striking Det. Matthew Gale's leg. At least four officers returned fire, hitting Simmons. He was pronounced dead at the hospital, she said.

Gale has non-life-threatening injuries and is expected to recover, according to the NYPD.

Tisch said two firearms were recovered at the scene. She said the incident began as a dispute involving the elderly couple.

A neighbor said she watched Simmons raise his two sons.

"He was dedicated to those children," she said. "I don't know what could have transpired that could've led up to this." 

Simmons has no prior arrests, but officers said his family told them he had a history of mental illness. 

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Police said Gale is a 15-year veteran of the NYPD.

"What happened this morning is a reminder that the men and women of the NYPD routinely place themselves between danger and the people that they serve. They enter situations that are uncertain and volatile and often life-threatening," Tisch said. "Detective Gale put his life on the line doing exactly that." 

At a news conference Friday afternoon, New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani thanked the law enforcement and emergency personnel involved.  

"Every day, thousands of NYPD officers go to great lengths to protect their fellow New Yorkers. That's what this officer from ESU did this morning," he said. 

New York Gov. Kathy Hochul also weighed in on social media.

"Relieved to hear our NYPD detective is in stable condition and in good spirits. We're all praying for a full recovery," she wrote.