What you should know
- A tourist was shot in the leg after a suspect tried to rob a Times Square store, according to a law enforcement source, leaving a large swath of midtown Manhattan streets closed while the search for the gunman was underway.
- Three men were inside a store, one of whom with a shopping bag was believed to be shoplifting.
- As a result, a large swath of downtown streets were closed and police asked people to avoid the area between 47th and 51st streets along Sixth Avenue. The department also said police presence could be expected in Times Square and traffic delays were likely.
NEW YORK — A tourist was shot in the leg after a suspect tried to rob a Times Square store, according to a law enforcement source, leaving multiple streets in midtown Manhattan closed for hours while the search for the gunman was underway.
The incident began shortly after 7 p.m. at a store near Broadway y West 41st Street, a police officer told our sister network NBC New York. Three people were inside a store, reportedly JD Sports on Broadway, according to the FDNY, when a person with a shopping bag was believed to have been shoplifting.
A loss prevention officer approached the three and asked for a receipt, a law enforcement source said. The other two individuals left the store while the security officer took the bag from the third. While the guard was talking to him, the third person took a few steps, pulled out a gun and fired, police sources said.
The bullets missed the security officer, but hit a tourist in the leg above the knee, the source told NBC New York. The victim, a woman she shopped at the store, was taken to Bellevue Hospital, where she was expected to recover.
Police arrived shortly after and the suspects ran north along Sixth Avenue, leaving the clothes in the road at 48th and 51st Streets.
Police sources said a 15-year-old boy was being questioned as a person of interest, but no arrests had yet been made. It was unclear exactly what role that individual in custody played in the incident, but he was not believed to be the shooter, police sources said.
The NYPD, who was still at large, released two images of the alleged robber and gunman.
NBC New York The man seen in the white jacket is the suspect police are searching for in connection with an alleged downtown shooting stemming from a robbery at a Times Square store.
Police are also trying to determine if shots were fired at police as the suspects fled. No injuries were reported among the officers.
As a result, several streets in midtown Manhattan were closed for hours, and police asked people to avoid the area between 47th and 51st streets along Sixth Avenue for much of Thursday night. Sixth Avenue did not reopen until after 10 p.m. The department also said that police presence could be expected in Times Square and that traffic delays were likely.
An investigation is ongoing.
2024-02-09 04:05:42
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