(NEW YORK) — A 38-year-old man suspected of shooting an off-duty NYPD officer has been arrested in Rockland County, New York, where he was found hiding out in a hotel, police sources told ABC News.
The unidentified officer, who remains hospitalized, attempted to buy a car on Ruby Street in Brooklyn on Saturday night after the details of the purchase were arranged on social media, police said.
When the officer arrived, the suspect immediately displayed a gun and announced the robbery, police said. Gunfire was exchanged and the officer was hit and transported to the hospital in critical condition, according to police.
New York City Mayor Eric Adams said Saturday that the officer was “fighting for his life.” The mayor provided an update Monday and said the officer’s family was making decisions about his future.
The unidentified suspect has nearly two dozen prior arrests, including for strangulation, grand larceny, and aggravated harassment, and is believed to be part of a two-man stick-up crew that has been linked to at least three robberies in the area, according to sources.
One of the suspect’s alleged prior robberies utilized a Facebook Marketplace scam, according to police sources, like the one involved in the shooting of the off-duty officer.
Detectives had been watching multiple locations but ended up catching him at the hotel, sources said. They also searched the suspected getaway car, a dark-colored BMW with tinted windows, which was recovered in Manhattan, according to sources.
The suspect, who was handcuffed with the wounded officer’s handcuffs, is expected to be returned to the 75th Precinct in Brooklyn and charged with attempted murder of the officer, according to police sources.
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