By Patrick Donachie
An off-duty corrections officer fatally shot a suspected would-be robber in Jamaica Sunday evening, according to the NYPD.
At about 8:30 p.m., the officer, whose name was not released, was on his way to his second job in private security and was at the corner of Merrick Boulevard and Liberty Avenue, directly east of the York College campus in downtown Jamaica. The officer was wearing his security guard uniform at the time of the attempted robbery, police said.
According to the NYPD, an armed male who was not identified tried to rob the officer at gunpoint. The off-duty officer was also armed, with a revolver in a holster at his side. The off-duty officer discharged his service weapon during the robbery attempt and struck the man in the torso, according to police.
EMS workers responded and took the wounded man to Jamaica Hospital, where he was pronounced dead soon after. The officer was also transported to a nearby hospital with chest pains and was in stable condition shortly after the incident, police said.
The NYPD also said the shooting would be investigated by the Queens district attorney’s office. A spokeswoman for the DA’s office said the case was still under investigation.
Reach reporter Patrick Donachie by e-mail at pdona
