Flags in New York City are flying at half-mast today in honor of Sergeant Paul Tuozzolo, the NYPD officer shot and killed yesterday afternoon in the Bronx.
Speaking at Jacobi Hospital, Mayor de Blasio promised the city would support the Sergeant Tuzzolo's family as long as they needed it:
"The City is in mourning, and the family of the NYPD is in mourning, and particularly all the men and women of the 4-3 Precinct are in mourning right now. They lost a very good man, a devoted man, a man who committed his life to protecting all of us. We told his wife, his mother, his father that the NYPD would be with them, with their family for as long as they need help for years and years to come. We will support that family."
At a press conference in front of Jacobi Hospital, Police Commissioner James O'Neil shed light on yesterday's incident, which left Sergeant Tuozzolo dead and Sergeant Emmanuel Kwo hospitalized with gunshot wounds to his leg.
According to O'Neill, patrol officers pulled over a red Jeep shortly before 3 p.m. yesterday that was bring driven by an armed man who was suspected of breaking into a woman's apartment in the Bronx. The suspect, who was later identified as Manuel Rosales, fired a .45 caliber handgun at the officers as they approached his car, striking both of them.
According to the Daily News, two additional officers, including a training recruit with Tuozzolo and Kwo, returned fire, killing Rosales.
Tuozzolo, a 19-year department veteran and 41-year-old resident of Suffolk County where he lived with his wife and two children, was shot in the face and died hours after the incident. Kwo, a 9-year veteran, is expected to survive the gunshot wounds to his leg.
Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz Jr. released a statement expressing condolences to the friends and families of both officers:
"This heartbreaking incident puts into clear focus both the difficulties our police officers face every day and the true scourge of guns and gun violence faced by our police, our communities and our nation."
New York City Council Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito also released a statement on the shooting:
"All New Yorkers should be outraged by the senseless violence that continues to needlessly take the lives of law enforcement officers and innocent bystanders in our city and across the country. Our thoughts and prayers are with the NYPD, with the family of Sgt. Tuozzolo and we wish a speedy recovery to Sgt Kwo.”
Rosales, 35, was a Suffolk County resident with 17 prior arrests, according to O'Neill. Two of those, per the News, were for domestic violence. Rosales had reportedly broken into his estranged wife's apartment in the Bronx and stayed there for at least two hours, according to the Times, before she was able to call 911, causing him to flee the apartment.
