Location of the incident near the intersection of Borden Avenue and Center Boulevard in LIC. Photo by James Edstrom
Oct.1, 2024 By Bill Parry
Police from the 108th Precinct in Long Island City are searching for two armed robbers who targeted a 27-year-old man in a shooting incident near the Hunters Point South waterfront two blocks west of the station house on the night of Sunday, Sept. 29.
It was just past 11:30 p.m. when the suspects allegedly snatched a chain from the victim’s neck near the intersection of Borden Avenue and Center Boulevard causing minor injuries. It got worse when the victim fought back, and one of his assailants pulled out a handgun and fired several times, striking the man in the ear and shoulder, police said.
The suspects drove off in a red vehicle in an unknown direction. EMS responded to the crime scene and rushed the victim to New York Presbyterian/Weill Cornell Medical Center on Manhattan’s Upper East Side, where he was listed in stable condition. There have been no arrests, and the investigation remains ongoing.
Anyone with information regarding this robbery and assault investigation is asked to call the NYPD’s Crime Stoppers Hotline at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477) or for Spanish, 1-888-57-PISTA (74782). The public can also submit their tips by logging onto the Crime Stoppers website at crimestoppers.nypdonline.org or on X (the platform formerly known as Twitter) @NYPDTips. All calls and messages are kept confidential.
Through Sept. 29, the 108th Precinct has reported 181 robberies so far in 2024, 14 fewer than the 195 reported at the same point last year, a decline of 7.2%, according to the most recent CompStat report. Felony assaults are on the rise in the precinct, with 191 reported so far this year, 13 more than the 178 reported at the same point in 2023, an increase of 7.3%, according to CompStat. The 108th Precinct has reported three shooting incidents so far in 2024, two fewer than the five reported at the same point last year, a decline of 40%, according to CompStat.
The community was left shaken by the Sunday night shooting. Hunters Point Civic Association president James Edstrom spoke to several witnesses and other concerned neighbors that he is contemplating an emergency meeting of his organization to discuss the spasm of violence.
“Residents were terrified; they hid behind parked cars at 1-55 Borden Ave., and when they thought it was safe, they flew into the lobby,” Edstrom posted on his Hunters Point South Waterfront Facebook group.
He returned to the scene of the shooting on Monday and found the blood stains had been power-washed from the sidewalk, but his community was shaken.
“Residents are scared. Many residents walk their dogs at that time of night, and in warm weather, they have their children with them,” Edstrom said. “Several residents told me they don’t want to go out at night anymore; they don’t feel safe. One resident said they wanted to move and another told me this should not be happening in such a nice neighborhood. They are right.”
He warned his worried neighbors to always be aware of their surroundings, especially at night.
“This is also not the first chain snatching,” Edstrom added. “We are telling our neighbors not to wear chains, do not talk on your cell phones and not notice what’s happening in our community.”
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