A gunman took his own life after shooting two in an incident that sparked a police standoff and a bomb scare in Gowanus on Monday, officials said.
The terror started when 54-year-old Cameron Walthe of East New York walked into C and A Iron Works, asked for a job and, without warning, opened fire on workers inside, police said.
Someone called 911 at 11:17 am to report two men shot at 13th Street and Hamilton Place, fire officials said.
Responding emergency medical personnel found a 65-year-old shot in the face and another man blasted in the chest, police said.
Paramedics transported the pair to Lutheran Medical Center, where they were admitted in critical condition, officials with the Fire Department said.
Walthe barricaded himself in a first-floor tool room in the metal shop at 65 13th St., cops stated.
Police cordoned off the block between Second Avenue and Hamilton Place and donned combat gear, including helmets, bulletproof vests, and a riot shield, to confront the shooter.
The unhinged man at one point opened the door and threw an object that had wires protruding from it, prompting cops to call in the bomb squad, officers stated.
A law enforcement rep could not say whether the device was an actual explosive.
Police talked to the fellow for 45 minutes before he turned his 9-milimieter Ruger pistol on himself, according to the authorities.
“We thought we had a positive dialogue, but then he shot himself in the head,” said Lt. Jack Cambria, a member of the NYPD hostage-negotiation team.
Police say they don’t know why Walthe chose the metal shop for his rampage or whether he was denied employment.
Investigators are looking into whether he had a relationship with the company, police said.
— with Jason Speakman
