A retired corrections officer shot and killed a man inside of the Borough Hall subway station on Tuesday night after a verbal dispute escalated into a physical fight, police said.
The authorities said the two men were arguing on the mezzanine level of the station at 6:38 pm. The two then started to fight and the 69-year-old gunman fired a single shot, striking the man in the torso, cops said.
Emergency personnel responded and took the man, Gilbert Drogheo, a 32-year-old from the Harlem section of Manhattan, to Brooklyn Hospital Center, where he died, police said.
No charges have been filed and an investigation into the killing is ongoing, according to police officials.
Norman Seabrook, president of the Correction Officers’ Benevolent Association, told WNYC’s Brian Lehrer on Wednesday morning that retired prison guards are allowed to carry firearms to keep themselves safe from the prisoners they used to guard.
“A correction officer, just like a police officer or any other law enforcement officer, when he or she retires from the agency, has the right if they choose to — to carry a personal protection weapon,” he said. “We deal with some of the most violent individuals in society, and god forbid you run into this person at another time or another place.”
He elaborated in a statement to The Brooklyn Paper, saying that the former jailer acted properly in killing Drogheo.
“It appears that the officer did everything he was required,” Seabrook said. “We will follow this case very closely and would hope that the public doesn’t rush to judgment. It’s unfortunate that a man lost his life. However, I’m happy the officer showed regards for public safety and did not just randomly start shooting.”