The victim was shot in the arm when the gunman opened fire, as others in the waiting room ducked for cover. NBC New York’s Checkey Beckford reports.
The man police believe to be responsible for opening fire inside a waiting room at a Bronx hospital and shooting a man in the arm has been arrested, police said, tracked down after he signed in at that hospital.
Keber Martinez was arrested just before midnight, almost 12 hours after he allegedly fired multiple shots at Jacobi Medical Center in the Morris Park section of the Bronx around lunchtime on Tuesday, according to police.
Dramatic surveillance video obtained by NBC New York showed a man in a black hoodie, believed to be Martinez, standing at a desk. Soon after, he can be seen pulling out a gun and charging at another man in a red jacket, firing several times — even as other people were seated nearby.
The victim was struck once in the arm, police sources said, and the 25-year-old suspect fled as people inside the waiting room took cover. A trail of blood was left in the waiting room, as the victim sought help and was taken to an operating room. The victim is expected to recover.
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The hospital was locked down as a precaution, though the shooting was believed to be an isolated incident.
Sources also said it appeared the victim and Martinez knew each other, and police believe that to be the case.
Martinez, who lives in the Soundview section of the Bronx, was charged with attempted murder, reckless endangerment and criminal possession of a firearm, police said. He was found in part because he signed in at the hospital in order to supposedly get medical treatment, complaining of asthma issues, allowing police to know who he was and track him down.
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According to an NYPD official, Martinez was arrested after his sister called 911 and reported her brother was acting erratically, had a gun and had been hearing voices.
In a statement, NYC Health + Hospitals said: “Earlier this afternoon an individual walked into the NYC Health + Hospital/Jacobi emergency department and shot another individual who was in the waiting room. This was a cowardly act in a space where New Yorkers come for healing and care. Our health care heroes swiftly took care of the shooting victim and took actions to protect the other patients in the waiting room. Our immediate focus is on caring for the patient and ensuring the safety of our staff. We are working closely with the NYPD as they conduct their investigation.”
No hospital employees were hurt during the incident.
New York City Mayor Eric Adams later tweeted that he would be visiting with the victim in the hospital, calling the shooting a "reprehensible act."
The shooting at Jacobi came four and a half years after a fatal shooting at another medical facility in the borough, Bronx Lebanon Hospital. Authorities said Dr. Henry Bello shot one person fatally and wounded six others on June 30, 2017 before taking his own life.
