THE BRONX, NEW YORK — Three armed muggers brazenly attempted to rob an off-duty police officer as he was video chatting with his son, in the Bronx. They initially got his phone when one of them saw the badge and allegedly shouted in Spanish, “shoot him” (‘Matalo!’). Thankfully, he was armed with his own pistol and able to shoot one of the suspects while the rest got away. According to NBC 4 New York, although the two escaped, they dropped his belongings because they realized he was a police officer.
This attack happened around 4 am, according to the police reports. The off-duty police officer was unharmed but taken to the hospital for evaluation while the robber was transported to another hospital where he is listed in stable condition.
via NBC 4 New York
“I stayed on the phone with the 911 operator. I gave him a description through the window while [the officer] was standing out there with his weapon drawn and was holding one individual down,” said one witness.
Thankfully, this officer made it through without injury — precisely what we like to see. Unfortunately, two of the assailants escaped and although eye witnesses did their best to give descriptions to the police, it may be altogether difficult to properly identify them later on. This officer definitely performed well under pressure and thank goodness he had his firearm on him.
Imagine what would have happened to just about anyone else?
We’ve discussed this before — New York City doesn’t usually issue concealed carry permits though counties outside the five burroughs often do. The problem with this is that the only people left with guns are usually the police, high-end private security, some notable celebrities like Donald Trump, and criminals with illegally obtained guns. That leaves a whole lot of people at the mercy of thugs like these three.
The NYPD came out with a heavy response, according to NBC 4 New York. They closed off streets to conduct a thorough investigation of the crime scene and try to find any links to those criminals who ambushed a fellow officer. Would this response have gone the same way if a regular resident (or tourist) had gotten bushwhacked? Ideally, we’d like to think so. In the meantime, maybe this could be a great lesson on why regular citizens need to have the right to be armed. In a city that never sleeps, neither do the bad guys.