A New York City detective was in the middle of doing paperwork amid a robbery investigation in Queens on Monday when cellphone video caught a man sneaking up on the detective and whacking the side of his head with a long, plastic stick, resulting in a head wound, police told the New York Post.
What are the details?
The Detectives’ Endowment Association shared video on Twitter showing the uniformed officer standing outside the crime scene on a sidewalk covered in broken glass.
The detective was facing the building, and his head was down as he focused on filling out paperwork just before noon when the suspect snuck up from behind him and lowered the boom, police told the paper.
The detective immediately reacted in pain, holding the side of his head, as the suspect slowly retreated down the street.
“What happened?” one person is heard asking on the clip as another uniformed officer — joined by a second individual — chases the perp.
Welcome to NYC!
Even as our Detectives investigate crimes they’re attacked by emboldened criminals, who have quick… https://t.co/ihwY0c08cg
— Detectives’ Endowment Association (@Detectives’ Endowment Association)1619476769.0
No motive was immediately provided for the attack, the Post said.
“Welcome to NYC!” the Detectives’ Endowment Association wrote in its tweet. “Even as our detectives investigate crimes, they’re attacked by emboldened criminals who have quickly realized there are no consequences for law breakers in our city. The DEA is calling for this violence to be fully prosecuted as we look to file civil charges.”
What happened to the suspect?
Akeele Morgan, 25, was arrested near the scene of the attack, police told the Post.
Morgan, who’s from the Bronx, was charged with assault, criminal possession of a weapon, resisting arrest, and disorderly conduct, the paper said.
The New York Daily News said the suspect was awaiting arraignment in Queens criminal court.
DEA President Paul DiGiacomo on Monday added to the Daily News that the suspect “needs to be prosecuted fully for his actions,” and that the union may file a civil action against him.
“If there’s anyone wondering why this happened, they can ask their elected officials who have created a city of no consequences for criminality,” DiGiacomo also told the Daily News.
What happened to the detective?
The detective was taken to New York Presbyterian-Queens Hospital, the Daily News said. He suffered a gash to his head and a whip mark, the Post reported, citing his union.