Quantcast

Listening device tips police off to East New York murder

Listening device tips police off to East New York murder
Photo via Getty Images

Cops are hunting the shooter who gunned down a 29-year old man in East New York on Friday.

A ShotSpotter device — a crime-fighting gadget that pinpoints the sound of gunfire and automatically alerts authorities — alerted police to the shooting at Atlantic Avenue near Williams Avenue at around 3 a.m., cops said.

Upon arrival, officers found the victim unconscious with a bullet wound to the head, and medics pronounced him dead on the scene, according to authorities.

No arrests have been made, and the investigation remains ongoing.

The death comes during an uptick in gun violence in the area. Shootings in the 75th Precinct, where Friday’s incident occurred, have almost doubled year-to-date since 2018 — from 18 incidents to 33 — according to police.

Police Department brass blamed District Attorney Eric Gonzalez for the increase in gun violence throughout northern Brooklyn neighborhoods — including Crown Heights, Bedford-Stuyvesant, and East New York — earlier this month, claiming the prosecutor’s jail-diversion program puts too many illegal gun owners back onto the streets.

A spokesman for the DA countered, arguing that borough-wide shooting stats are down compared to this time last year, and that beneficiaries of the program demonstrate a lower recidivism rate than incarcerated offenders.

Anyone who provides police with information leading to an arrest can expect up to a $2,500 reward through the NYPD’s Crime Stoppers program. The public can phone their tips to (800) 577-8477, log into the Crime Stoppers website at www.nypdcrimestoppers.com, tweet @NYPDTips, or text tips to 274637 (CRIMES) then enter TIP577.

All calls are strictly confidential.

Reach reporter Aidan Graham at agraham@schnepsmedia.com or by calling (718) 260–4577. Follow him at twitter.com/aidangraham95.