NYPD Releases Body Cam Footage Of UWS Cathedral Shooting: See It

Upper West Side NY

12 March, 2021

4:57 PM

Description

UPPER WEST SIDE, NY — The New York Police Department released Friday the footage of an officer-worn camera and CCTV clips of a terrifying scene on Dec. 13 when a lone gunman fired multiple shots from the steps of the Cathedral of St. John the Divine on the Upper West Side after an outdoor Christmas concert. The shooting unfolded after the gunman, later identified as 52-year-old Luis Vasquez, walked out of a line to get inside the cathedral at 112th Street and Amsterdam Avenue and onto the top steps. Looking down at the crowd of people, he pulled out two guns from his jacket and fired multiple shots into the air. The gunshots sent the majority of a group of at least 30 people running to the other side of Amsterdam, while some people closer to Vasquez took cover behind objects or laid flat on the ground. Officer Daurys Gutierrez and Detective Jason Harper, already on the scene, began returning fire as they helped people to safety and yelled multiple times at Vasquez to drop his weapons, the video shows. Witnesses at the scene said that Vasquez yelled out "kill me" as the shooting unfolded. The two members of the police department were quickly joined by an NYPD Sergeant, identified as Kensington Cunningham, who was stationed nearby. The three NYPD members fired 15 shots at Vasquez, one of which struck the 52-year-old in the head and killed him. Nobody besides Vasquez was injured during the shooting. Of the three NYPD officers, only Guttierez was wearing his body camera. On Friday, police released Guttierez's point of view of the incident, along with an overhead CCTV video. Viewer discretion is advised as parts of the video can be difficult to watch. You can watch it — HERE. Read More: Gunman Killed After Opening Fire On The Steps Of UWS Cathedral