A suspect was shot in a struggle with police over a gun when authorities responded to a call about a robbery in Queens Monday, according to police officials.
Police say a woman watching her Maspeth home on a remote surveillance camera feed called cops when she spotted a man breaking into the house. She went to meet the officers in front of her home, and after opening the door for them, scooped up her small dog and retreated from the scene, all played out on cellphone video obtained on NBC 4 New York. She screams as she hears the police gunshot.
The cops -- highly decorated 10-year and 11-year veterans, according to officials -- split up inside the first-floor apartment during their search. That's when the suspect came charging out of the bedroom and struggled with one of the officers, according to NYPD Chief of Detectives Bob Boyce.
A single shot was fired from the officer's gun, and the suspect was shot in the groin. He managed to run away but was caught about a block away in a backyard, Boyce said. Cellphone video from another neighbor shows him being carted away in a stretcher.
The suspect was taken to the hospital. No officers were hurt.
The victim told NBC 4 New York Monday evening she was OK and her dog was doing fine, but declined to speak further.
Police said the suspect is a career burglar from Bushwick who has targeted homes in Brooklyn and Queens. Police are investigating whether he's tied to a recent burglary pattern in the Maspeth area.
Meanwhile, police were called to the scene for a separate but unrelated incident on the same block. A 36-year-old woman suffered a seizure and was found with a cut to the head, Boyce said. Doctors removed a short piece of wire cable about a quarter-inch in length from her scalp. It appears she fell on a piece of wire.
