Five people were shot during a parade in Brooklyn, New York, on Monday when a man began firing into the crowd participating in the West Indian American Day festival parade; two of them are in critical condition.
“A person who intentionally attacked a group of people was trying to ruin everyone's day, and we're not going to let that happen,” NYPD Chief of Patrol John Chell said at a news conference after the shooting.
He said four of the victims were men and one woman, two of them in critical condition and three are expected to survive.
Chell said there was no active shooter and the parade was continuing.
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Five people were shot during a parade in Brooklyn, New York, on Monday when a man began firing into the crowd participating in the West Indian American Day festival parade; two of them are in critical condition. (Peter Gerber for Fox News Digital)
“We have a number of police officers working very hard this weekend, very hard today to keep this community and this parade safe, and we'll be here until the wee hours of the morning doing just that. Working hard to keep this community safe.”
Police were still searching for the suspect after the shooting. (Peter Gerber/Fox News)
Police are still searching for the suspect, whom Chell described as a black man in his 20s, of thin build, wearing a black shirt with paint stains and a black bandana.
Police clear rioters from the street after a shooting on Eastern Parkway near the corner of Franklin Avenue during the West Indian Day Parade, Monday, Sept. 2, 2024, in the Brooklyn borough of New York. (AP Photo/Andres Kudacki) (AP Photo/Andrés Kudacki)
Chell added that police believe the shooting was “not random,” but police do not know his motive.
Thousands of people lined the parade route Monday for the festival celebrating “Caribbean heritage and culture,” according to the city. (AP Photo/Andrés Kudacki)
Thousands of people lined the parade route Monday for the festival, which celebrates “Caribbean heritage and culture,” according to the city.
“I'm crying over this, it's so terrible. How can someone have the courage to shoot a gun in front of so many people, babies, children, old people?” witness Jalissa Bailey told the New York Post.
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“I know this parade has a history of violence, but things have been peaceful in recent years and we were hoping there would be enough security to stop that,” he added.
