NYPD officers shoot, kill man who pointed gun during argument in Brooklyn. Details on active investigation
NEW YORK -- A man was shot and killed by police in Brooklyn overnight after officers said he pulled out a gun during an argument with several other people.
The scene on Church Avenue in East Flatbush was still very active early Sunday. Detectives were scouring the area and placing evidence markers around the scene. At one point, a drone was sent up.
Officers saw the man had a gun
According to NYPD, two public safety officers and a sergeant patrolling the area at around 1 a.m. saw the 33-year-old man point a gun at another man during an argument.
The officers approached and the armed man ran down Church Avenue. An officer fired a stun gun at him, but he continued running away with the gun, police said.
Officers then opened fire and shot the man, who they said refused orders to drop the gun. He was taken to Kings County Hospital and died from his injuries.
Taser "momentarily" stunned the man
"One of the officers discharged their Taser and the Taser momentarily, momentarily stunned the male. The male got back up, he still had the gun in his hand, he runs back on the sidewalk and runs back towards 52nd Street. The officers give further commands for the male to drop the gun and they fire their weapons," said NYPD Chief of Department Jeffrey Maddrey.
At the overnight press conference, Maddrey said the man's gun was recovered at the scene.
Police said they're also investigating a man with a graze wound who walked into Kings County Hospital about an hour after the shooting. It was not immediately clear if he was hurt in the same incident.
Neighbors described an intense scene
"I thought it was an exchange of gunfire when I heard it," neighbor Sharon Hoyte-Chalk said of the three to four shots she claimed to have heard.
Karate dojo owner James Ogle spent Sunday cleaning up shattered glass from the shooting just outside of his business.
A shot at the door put a hole through the gate, shattered the glass and ended up piercing the wall several feet away, just hours after a packed martial arts class.
"One bullet came through -- you can see the hole -- and the other one for some reason didn't break the glass," Ogle said.
Mohammad Azam, the owner of Quick Access Pharmacy, said he hasn't even officially opened his business on the block became the center of a crime scene.
"I don't feel safe," Azam said, adding, "It shouldn't happen. I'm really concerned about it."
"Prayers out to the families, you know what I'm saying?" neighbor Sasha Edwards added. "Hope that they can get through this somehow."