A 60-year-old employee was shot inside a Jamaica pawn shop just before 1 p.m. on Monday, March 28, according to authorities.
Police from the 103rd Precinct in Jamaica arrived at the Global Pawn Shop, located at 178-22 Jamaica Ave., and discovered the man unconscious and unresponsive with a gunshot wound to the head, according to an NYPD spokeswoman. The gunman fled on foot in an unknown direction.
EMS arrived at the crime scene and transported the victim to Jamaica Hospital Medical Center in critical but stable condition, the spokeswoman said.
A witness named Hassin, who didn’t want his last name divulged, said the victim was the owner of the pawn shop whom he has known for at least six years.
“He’s a really good guy. A really good guy, a good friend. He must have known the gunman because he let him in the door,” Hassin said. “If he doesn’t know you he does business from a window. He buzzed him in through the door so he must’ve known the shooter. That’s what really got me. I hope he’s gonna be all right.”
The NYPD spokeswoman could not say whether the victim was the owner or an employee, just that the investigation is ongoing.
The suspect was wearing a black jacket, gray cargo pants, black sneakers, a camouflage Adidas baseball cap with a white logo and carrying a book bag.
Anyone with information in regard to the identity of the suspects is asked to call the NYPD’s Crime Stoppers Hotline at 800-577-TIPS (8477) or for Spanish, 888-57-PISTA (74782). The public can also submit their tips by logging onto the CrimeStoppers website at nypdcrimestoppers.com, or on Twitter @NYPDTips. All calls and messages are kept confidential.
Additional reporting by Lloyd Mitchell.
