25-year-old man shot in East Village, gunfire causes mass panic
NEW YORK -- The NYPD is investigating after a 25-year-old man was shot late Friday night in the East Village.
It happened on St. Mark's Place, in a bustling neighborhood lined with restaurants and apartments, CBS2's Christina Fan reported Saturday.
The gunshots caused massive panic. A stampede of people ran down the sidewalk while others, dining al fresco, ducked under tables.
"We were just hanging out in the apartment and we just heard a bang and then a bang, bang," one man said.
"It was just three shots and just a wall of people running past us. So we kind of just hid and waited to see if there was more shots or I think to see if there was somebody coming," another man said.
According to police, the man who was shot was taken to Bellevue Hospital in stable condition.
Families said a scene like this is uncommon in the neighborhood.
"I notice vagrancy, drug problems, a lot of sketchiness. I haven't seen shootings. That's a new element of danger," another person said.
For many, the sound of gunfire in such a dense population had them fearing the worst in a world with so many mass shootings.
"When I was sitting there, I didn't know if it was a so-called personal, a small, localized shooting or if it was an active shooter thing where the gunshots would continue," one woman said.
Investigators face several unanswered questions, including if the victim was the intended target and what led up to the shooting.
Police did not immediately release a description of the suspect.