NYC Gun Violence: Man Shot To Death On Bronx Street After Weekend Of Stray Bullet Shootings
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- More gun violence in New York City left a man dead overnight in the Bronx.
Over the weekend, an off-duty officer was shot, and a bus full of passengers panicked.
It's all part of spiking gun violence across New York City.
CBS2's John Dias took a look at how the community is reacting.
As Dias reported, a walk to school shouldn't be detoured by crime scene tape, part of the toll from growing gun violence in New York City, which pays no attention to age.
"Scary, because my daughter goes to school on this block," said University Heights resident Felicia Lora.
Like many parents Monday, Lora had to shield her daughter's eyes. She didn't want her to see the deadly crime scene on Andrews Avenue in the University Heights neighborhood of the Bronx. Police say a 41-year-old man was fatally shot in the head just after midnight.
"I walk this every morning, and it's so dangerous," Lora said. "I don't even want to leave my house."
The latest NYPD numbers show shooting victims are up 50% in the last month, and almost 32% compared to this time last year. In the month of January alone, the city saw 94 shooting incidents, compared to 71 in 2021.
"We got a high case of violence over here, man," said Bronx resident Vasco Garcia.
"New York in general is pitiful with the gun violence anyway. It's crazy out here with the gun violence," resident Dwayne Jones said.
Over the weekend, an off-duty NYPD officer in Harlem was the seventh cop shot this year. He's already been released from the hospital, and police believe he was not the intended target. However, that hasn't stopped his fellow officers and clergymen from condemning the violence.
"We stand with you," said NYPD Community Affairs Liaison Robert Rice. "We want you to know that we don't want you to feel afraid to be shot by a stray bullet."
But that's exactly what happened Sunday afternoon. People on an MTA bus were traumatized in East Harlem, when police say a stray bullet hit the side of it. Surveillance video shows a person firing a gun as the bus was turning the corner. The bus driver had everyone duck for cover. Luckily, no one was hurt.
"It's repeating the 1970s. Wild wild west out here," said Donald Yates, president and chief of staff for Transportation Workers Union Local 100.
Yates says in the past six months, at least four buses have been hit by gunfire.
"It's dangerous out there, too dangerous, and our bus operators are defenseless. Some of them are even asking for bulletproof vests," Yates said in a statement.
Police have yet to make an arrest in the Bronx shooting, and are still trying to figure out a motive. Police have not yet released the name of the victim.
Anyone with information is asked to call the NYPD's Crime Stoppers hotline at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477), or for Spanish, 1-888-57-PISTA (74782). You can also submit a tip via their website or via DM on Twitter, @NYPDTips. All calls are kept confidential.
