An off-duty NYPD officer was shot in the leg Wednesday during a brawl caused by road rage in Queens, New York, according to local police.
The cop was driving his personal vehicle eastbound on Queens Boulevard around 12:45 p.m. local time. He pulled up to a white minivan blocking the roadway according to Jeffrey Maddery, Chief of the New York Police Department (NYPD).
The footage was taken by a witness at Queens Boulevard and 70th street in Elmhurst and first obtained by the New York Post.
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Words were exchanged between the people in the two vehicles. The cop was able to get around the minivan but the vehicles met up again up the road where more words were exchanged. A second man came up behind the cop’s car and smashed his window, NYPD officials explained.
Off-duty NYPD cop shot during road rage clash with man who tried to grab his gun: sources https://t.co/eQDicM2e7Y pic.twitter.com/QA4HVHX4qo
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The NYPD later identified the second man as the driver’s brother.
The off-duty officer exited his vehicle, identified himself as an officer and drew his firearm. The officer then told the man who smashed his window that he was under arrest for doing so.
The officer called 9-1-1 while holding the two men at gunpoint. He holstered his weapon and waited for other officers to arrive when the fight broke out. The officer was put in a chokehold and the two men began punching and kicking him, reportedly trying to grab his weapon.
A round was discharged from the officer’s weapon during the struggle. One of the brothers ran off while the other continued to fight the officer and a second round was discharged, according to authorities. (RELATED: Arizona Officer Shot And Killed During Traffic Stop)
The brothers were identified as Shawn and Edwin Rivera and police said they were taken into custody with pending charges.
One of them was arrested on the scene and the other one who ran was arrested at a local hospital with a gunshot wound to the hand, according to authorities.
“I had an opportunity to visit our officer, he’s in good spirits,” said Maddery. “He has a gunshot wound to his left thigh, it’s not life-threatening.”
Edwin Rivera, 32, the driver of the vehicle, has four prior arrests, while Shawn Rivera, 27, has two prior arrests, police said.