Police tracked the suspect down “when his fleeing auto hit a bicyclist and then an unmarked NYPD vehicle”, The New York Post said.
Advertisement
After a grid search, detectives located the vehicle in the vicinity of the hit-and-run and saw a person emerge around 10 p.m. Sunday and approach the auto.
The suspect’s escape unraveled when, in his haste to flee, he struck a bicyclist not far from the crime scene, allowing detectives to match the vehicle description back to eyewitness descriptions from the double murder, top police officials said in a Monday news conference. Police found the vehicle and monitored it until the suspect emerged around 10pm local time (3.00am GMT) on Sunday (14 August).
The NYPD’s chief of detectives, Robert Boyce, said Monday that police were fairly certain they had the man responsible.
Awad also said the group was waiting for more information about the circumstances behind the killing, including whether it will be determined that it was a hate crime.
News reports, citing police sources, speculated the shootings may have been a major escalation of a neighborhood dispute over parking between Muslims and Hispanics in the neighborhood, which is home to a growing population of Bangladeshi Muslims.
Mayor Bill de Blasio said “the killer will be brought to justice”. “It’s also clear there’s a lot of fear in the community”.
About 1,000 people, including New York City’s mayor, gathered Monday for the prayer service for Imam Maulana Alauddin Akonjee and Thara Uddin.
Surveillance video obtained by BuzzFeed News showed a person approaching the two from behind as they walked down a city street Saturday. “We want justice as soon as possible”. “That’s it”, he said. But he did attend the funeral to pay his respects to the families, and he spoke briefly with the imam’s sounds before addressing the crowd.
“I have never felt this kind of tension”, said Nizam Uddin, 57, a taxi driver who said he knew both the cleric and his associate. They were examples of peace and understanding.
“We know there are voices all over this country who are spewing hate, trying to create division, trying to turn one American against another”, he said. “Come on, this is common sense”.
Police said the man came from East New York, a troubled area of Brooklyn, and was believed to have a job in a warehouse. They were not robbed. Surveillance footage showed the suspect following the victims.
The suspect then shoots both of the men.
The police circulated a sketch of a man wearing glasses and described the suspect as an adult male with a medium complexion and a beard who was seen on a video wearing a dark-colored shirt and blue shorts.
The incident left the community on edge and grieving. Aktar said she has become afraid to wear her hijab in public, not because of the killings but because of what she sees is an escalating national anger against Muslims.
“How could you not be concerned about your brother your mother your father and your children?” “An attack on one of us is an attack on all of us”.
Imam Maulama Akonjee, left, and his assistant Thara Uddin, right, were fatally shot in Ozone Park Saturday, police said.
He was still in custody late Monday afternoon but hadn’t been charged with a crime.
Advertisement
“We are calling for all people, of all faiths, to rally with compassion and with a sense of vigilance so that justice can be served”.
