Two New York City police officers were killed today, both shot as they sat in their patrol vehicle in the Bedford Stuyvesant neighborhood of Brooklyn, city officials said.
The suspect Ismaayil Brinsley, 28 in the shooting was also dead, of a self-inflicted gunshot wound, the officials said. The gunman walked up to the officers sitting inside a patrol car and opened fire shortly before 3 p.m., officials said.
The suspect ran into a nearby subway station and shot himself, officials. Hours after the shooting, dozens of police in tactical gear cordoned off a roughly three-block area around the site of the shooting, while other officers watched over the scene from rooftops in the area.
The shooting comes at a time when police nationwide are being heavily criticized for the deaths of unarmed black men. In New York City, Eric Garner, a black man who was stopped by police for selling loose, untaxed cigarettes, died after an officer put him in a chokehold. The suspect apparently shot and wounded his ex girlfriend, posted a threat on instagram in Baltimore and traveled to NYC to deliberately KILL COPS!
"I can't breathe" -- words Garner could be heard gasping during his arrest, which was captured on an amateur video -- have become a rallying cry for demonstrators across the country.
One city councilman told ABC station WABC-TV in New York that the shooting in Brooklyn was "the worst thing that could have happened."
Brinsley posted a sinister message on Instagram earlier Saturday along with an image of a silver handgun and hashtags invoking the names of Michael Brown and Eric Garner after reportedly shooting and wounding a former girlfriend in Baltimore.
“I’m Putting Wings On Pigs Today. They Take 1 Of Ours...Let’s Take 2 of Theirs ... This May Be My Final Post...I’m Putting Pigs In A Blanket.” Brinsley wrote, with the hashtags #ShootThePolice #RIPErivGarner #RIPMike Brown.
According to Baltimore police, Brinsley shot and wounded a former girlfriend there around 5:45 a.m. Saturday before traveling to Brooklyn, Bratton said. The woman's mother contacted Baltimore police after she noticed Brinsley's comments on Instagram.
Baltimore police faxed a bulletin describing Brinsley to NYPD headquarters that arrived at 2:45 p.m., Bratton said, at almost the exact moment Brinsley opened fire on Liu and Ramos. Bratton said the ambush was at 2:47 p.m. in Brooklyn's Bedford-Stuyvesant neighborhood.
Bratton said according to a witness, Brinsley took a shooting stance on the passenger side of the police cruiser and fired several times striking both officers in the head. The pair, he said, never had the chance to draw their own weapons and may never have seen their assailant.
“Both officers paid the ultimate sacrifice today,” Bratton said.
Brinsley later fatally shot himself in the head on a subway platform after fleeing the scene.
New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio, speaking after the commissioner, called the attack an "assassination" and said that when a police officer is attacked, every New Yorker should feel as though they were attacked.
“Although we are still learning the details, it’s clear that this was an assassination. These officers were shot execution style,” de Blasio said. “A particularly despicable act … when a police officer is murdered, it tears at the very foundation of our society.”
"Our city is in mourning, our hearts are heavy," he said.
There have been protests almost nightly in New York City since the grand dury decisions in the police-involved deaths of Michael Brown and Eric Garner. Cops in both cases were not indicted.
The mayor has been sharply criticized by New York City police union leaders for comments perceived as unsupportive of the city's police force after an officer investigated in the chokehold death of Staten Island man Eric Garner was not indicted.
“I’m Putting Wings On Pigs Today. They Take 1 Of Ours...Let’s Take 2 of Theirs ... This May Be My Final Post...I’m Putting Pigs In A Blanket.” Brinsley wrote, with the hashtags #ShootThePolice #RIPErivGarner #RIPMike Brown.
According to Baltimore police, Brinsley shot and wounded a former girlfriend there around 5:45 a.m. Saturday before traveling to Brooklyn, Bratton said. The woman's mother contacted Baltimore police after she noticed Brinsley's comments on Instagram.
Baltimore police faxed a bulletin describing Brinsley to NYPD headquarters that arrived at 2:45 p.m., Bratton said, at almost the exact moment Brinsley opened fire on Liu and Ramos. Bratton said the ambush was at 2:47 p.m. in Brooklyn's Bedford-Stuyvesant neighborhood.
Bratton said according to a witness, Brinsley took a shooting stance on the passenger side of the police cruiser and fired several times striking both officers in the head. The pair, he said, never had the chance to draw their own weapons and may never have seen their assailant.
“Both officers paid the ultimate sacrifice today,” Bratton said.
Brinsley later fatally shot himself in the head on a subway platform after fleeing the scene.
New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio, speaking after the commissioner, called the attack an "assassination" and said that when a police officer is attacked, every New Yorker should feel as though they were attacked.
“Although we are still learning the details, it’s clear that this was an assassination. These officers were shot execution style,” de Blasio said. “A particularly despicable act … when a police officer is murdered, it tears at the very foundation of our society.”
"Our city is in mourning, our hearts are heavy," he said.
There have been protests almost nightly in New York City since the grand dury decisions in the police-involved deaths of Michael Brown and Eric Garner. Cops in both cases were not indicted.
The mayor has been sharply criticized by New York City police union leaders for comments perceived as unsupportive of the city's police force after an officer investigated in the chokehold death of Staten Island man Eric Garner was not indicted.
Until today, no NYPD officer had been fatally shot since December 2011, when Peter Figoski, a 22-year veteran, responded to a report of a break-in at a Brooklyn apartment and was shot in the face by one of the suspects hiding in a side room. The shooter, Lamont Pride, was convicted of murder and sentenced in 2013 to 45 years to life in prison.
On Facebook, I wrote that it is NOT acceptable! Everyone in Bedford is quiet. #nypdlivesmatter #blacklivesmatter #BedfordStuyvesant it is NOT acceptable. The police hate going on in America is partly fueling this. A suicidal person doesn't have to kill innocent officers 5 days before Christmas to make a statement. A community must AVOID THIS! #RIPNYPD
Listen to my podcast on why police and community need to get along.
With files from ABC and Yahoo News
