Bedlam broke out inside a jam-packed Corona barbershop on Friday evening when a man sought refuge from armed gang members who chased him on Roosevelt Avenue before a hero emerged to confront the gunman and prevent bloodshed.
Police from the 115th Precinct in Jackson Heights reported that an unknown man entered Lagumas El Cache Barbershop at 103-17 Roosevelt Ave. just before 5:45 p.m. on Nov. 8 and started shooting at a man before leaving the location. There have been no arrests, and the reckless endangerment investigation is ongoing, police said Monday.
Video surveillance footage from inside the shop captures the chaos that ensues when a man in a black long-sleeved shirt, who had been standing unnoticed just inside the front door and talking on his cell phone, realizes that the gunmen chasing him have spotted him. The victim quickly runs for cover as the gang members rush into the shop. In a split second, barber Rafael Abreu is seen making a quick decision to confront the four perpetrators, grappling with one of them who had pulled out a handgun.
As Abreu subdued the gang banger, another perp grabbed his firearm and proceeded to the back of the shop, where he fired the weapon at the victim but missed, leaving a bullet hole in the wall while the man he targeted was able to escape unharmed. Abreu and his co-workers chased the gunmen out of the shop, and they were last seen running northbound on 103rd Street.
“This shooting, which occurred just before 5:45 on Friday, is a stark reminder of how dangerous Roosevelt Avenue has become,” Former Council Member Hiram Monserrate said after meeting with Abreu. “Our local barber turned hero, Rafael Abreu, deserves the key to the city for exceptional bravery and saving lives.”
Abreu, a 47-year-old father of seven, came to the U.S. legally from the Dominican Republic eight years ago, according to Monserrate, who added that the barber disregarded his own safety and protected the fleeing man as well as his customers in the shop across Roosevelt Avenue from Corona Plaza. The chaotic scene unfolded in the midst of NYPD’s “Operation Restore Roosevelt,” which flooded the zone last month with extra cops and multiple city agencies working together to restore order during a 90-day crackdown.
“Even with a large presence of police officers on the Roosevelt Avenue corridor, [it] remains under criminal siege with cartels and gangs operating,” Monserrate said. “The battle to win back our streets continues.”
And so does Monserrate’s years-long political comeback. The current Democratic district leader from East Elmhurst is running to replace Council Member Francisco Moya, who will be term-limited and out of office next year. The former city cop and U.S. Marine has run several campaigns in recent years after he was expelled from the state Senate in 2010 for assaulting his then-girlfriend, which was a misdemeanor, and then served two years in prison after being convicted of a felony for conspiracy and mail fraud for misusing $100,000 in City Council grants to fund a political campaign for the Senate.
He is now part of the Let’s Improve Roosevelt Avenue coalition, which has recently staged several rallies calling for more significant law enforcement crackdowns along the corridor that runs through Woodside, Elmhurst, Jackson Heights, and Corona beneath the 7 train.
“These criminal elements have guns. There is a bullet hole on the wall at this barbershop that bears witness of the tragedy this could have been,” Monserrate said. “You can be on your way to the 7 train or go to get a haircut and get caught in the crossfire. This is real.”
Ramon Ramirez-Baez, president of the Let’s Improve Roosevelt Ave. coalition, said community members have expressed gratitude for the policing plan and called for the increased law enforcement presence to be made permanent. “We understand that without safety, we have nothing. We are clear that these police officers need to stay in place on Roosevelt Avenue beyond the 90 days,” Ramirez-Baez said after meeting the barber. “This young man is lucky he ran into Rafael Abreu’s workplace.”
Monserrate agreed. “Had Rafael Abreu not stood up and put his life on the line, there would have been at least one casualty and possibly more. He is a real hero all New Yorkers can be proud of.”
