An NYPD detective was shot in the back Sunday morning in a wild shootout after he a fellow officer jumped out of their car to confront an armed teen.
An 18-year-old suspect was arrested after the gunfight, which happened at Nostrand Avenue and St. Johns Place in Crown Heights around 4:45 a.m.
Two officers with a sex offender monitoring unit were in an unmarked police car when the teen suspect allegedly approached them with a semi-automatic pistol.
Police at the scene of the shooting involving an NYPD detective. Christopher Sadowski for NY Post
A teenage suspect is in custody, sources told The Post. Christopher Sadowski for NY Post
The officer, Detective Robert L. Karroll, was shot in the back while wearing a ballistic vest and has minor injuries, police said.
He was taken to a local hospital for treatment and is expected to make a full recovery, police said.
“Today that vest saved his life,” said NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch at a press conference Sunday morning.
An 18-year-old suspect has been arrested, and a gun has been recovered, sources told The Post.
A second officer suffered bruises to the face.
NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch, flanked by Mayor Zohran Mamdani and NYPD First Deputy Commissioner Tania Kinsella, speaks during a press conference early Sunday, July 5, 2026. Luiz C. Ribeiro for NY Post
An NYPD officer holds up a photograph of the firearm allegedly used in the shooting during an early Sunday press conference on July 5, 2026. Luiz C. Ribeiro for NY Post
The squad car was also hit several times with bullets in the shootout.
The officers had been reassigned to Brooklyn shortly after midnight as part of a stepped-up patrol for July 4.
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Three officers fired their weapons, but the suspect was not struck, according to police.
There is no body-worn camera video of the shooting, because it happened quickly and unexpectedly, police said at a press conference.
The suspect was not hit in the shootout and was later arrested several blocks at Rogers Avenue and Union Street away after a foot chase.
A picture of the alleged weapon used, a SAR 9mm handgun recovered from the scene, was also shared by the NYPD on X.