NYPD Cop Shot While Vacationing In Miami Beach

Yesterday morning, a vacation NYC police officer was shot in the courtyard of a boutique hotel in Miami Beach. Police believe the NYPD cop and the gunman (or gunmen) traded at least a dozen shots. A neighbor said, "I was sleeping and then all of a sudden I just heared like six or seven rounds in a row... I thought it was firecrackers, because they just went 'pop-pop-pop-pop-pop-pop-pop.' And then it stopped, and then you heard 'pop-pop-pop-pop-pop-pop.'...And then you didn't hear anything."

The Post identifies the cop as a "veteran" detective on the Joint Terrorism Task Force, Harold Thomas, who said he was being robbed: "Thomas was set upon by several assailants at 7 a.m. outside 1233 Lofts, a boutique hotel/condo complex... He told local cops he returned fire and believed he hit at least one attacker, a police source said."

Thomas, described as being "critically" wounded in the Daily News, underwent hours of surgery and his current condition is not known. Another guest at the 1233 Lofts told a local TV station, "I heard the first two [gunshots], then after that, it was just non-stop. I know it was at least 10 or 12... I thought [Thomas] was dead, actually. He had to stop breathing for a minute, because his eyes were gone, and then I looked at him for maybe 15, 20 minutes, and his eyes came back."

Police believe that Thomas was the victim in the incident and are still investigating. The 1233 Lofts is located in trendy South Beach, a block from the beach.

Contact the author of this article or email tips@gothamist.com with further questions, comments or tips.

By Jen Chung in News on July 24, 2011 12:55 PM

Comments [rss]

Guest

sounds like a drug deal gone bad to me. and to the ignorant person who thinks south beach is middle class uws kind of folks. you're an idiot. i'm a native. and before you open ur mouth to say some more dumb shit like " it said miami beach not south beach." it's south beach and there are plenty of shady rowdy crazy motherfuckers roaming the street. bienveniendo a miami.

MEDICNYC

I'm not sure how you came up with your drug deal theory. Just say you hate cops and be done with it.

Guest

It appears to investigators to be a random thing, possibly a robbery. I have no idea where you get a drug deal gone bag type of thing. As far as his condition, he's in a medically induced coma and is literally in the fight of his life.

Finally, I don't know the guy, but I know people who do and they say he's a great cop. Further, he's a first grade detective in the NYPD/FBI JTTF - if he was shady, they (the NYPD if not the FBI) would have known it.

Xira

Probably brought his "I AM THE LAW" big city ways outside the big city and got shot for it.

DietSodas

What a fucking moron.

Did you even bother to read the article?

Guest

Probably not. Like most things here, the hate switch gets flipped and reason goes out the window.

Non¢

or he was probably greeted by a few of the savage animals that roam the streets of "beautiful" Miami.

RightWingGenius

I would bet my 401K that these animals were not WMAs.

shinobishaw

Nice to see another ignorant racist comment around here (sarcasm), FYI but Miami beach is a mostly upper middle class area and there are seldom any hoodlums. It's the UWS of Miami, twit.