A man was reportedly shot by an off-duty NYPD officer during an altercation outside a Park Slope bar early Tuesday morning. At least one Bleachers bar patron was shot around 12:30 a.m., according to an NYPD spokesperson, who could not confirm that an off-duty officer had any part in the incident.
But police sources tell the NY Post and DNAinfo that a police sergeant and his cousin had been walking near the intersection of Prospect Place and Flatbush Avenue shortly before 1 a.m. today when a man attempted to rob them and take control of the officer's weapon. The men reportedly grappled for the gun; the would-be robber was shot in his right leg, fled the scene, and later checked himself into nearby Methodist Hospital.
The NYPD confirms that 12:58 a.m. a 32-year-old man with a gunshot wound was admitted to Methodist Hospital, and is listed in stable condition. He is currently in police custody, and has not been charged. The Daily News reports that officers are working to determine if the man admitted to Methodist is the suspected robber or an injured bystander.
Reports of any attempted robbery are also under investigation and could not yet be confirmed by the police spokesperson.
In a now-deleted tweet, the NYPD Sergeant's Benevolent Association wrote Tuesday morning that "an off duty police officer shot a male early this morning that was trying to rob him in the Park Slope section of Brooklyn."
Nearby residents told DNAinfo they heard four gunshots, and both damaged windows and a pool of blood were visible near the scene of the shooting. "It was frightening," Mike Edelman, 69, told the news site. "I was frightened and furious. It's normally a beautiful, quiet neighborhood."
Twelve hours later, parts of Sixth Avenue and St. Marks Avenue in Park Slope are still closed due to the investigation, according to local residents.
