Police say the officer was struck in the face with birdshot during an exchange at a homicide scene.
NEW YORK, N.Y. — An NYPD officer was shot in the face and a suspected gunman later died after barricading himself inside a Brownsville apartment on Monday morning, authorities said. The shooting unfolded as officers guarded evidence from an earlier homicide on Thomas S. Boyland Street in Brooklyn.
Officials said emergency crews were first called around 6 a.m. about a man found shot outside 1046 Thomas S. Boyland St. The discovery opened a fast-moving sequence: securing the sidewalk where the victim lay, preserving a shotgun shell found in the building vestibule, and waiting for detectives to process the scene. Nearly two hours later, a man opened the door of a first-floor apartment and fired a shotgun at close range, striking the officer. The officer’s injuries were described as consistent with birdshot and not life-threatening. The episode condensed two violent events — a fatal shooting and then a second gunfire burst — into one block of Brownsville at the start of the workday.
Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch said two officers had been holding the scene while investigators worked when the door swung open and the blast hit one of them on the left side of his face. “This could have ended very differently,” Tisch said, praising the actions of officers who “stood their ground” as chaos briefly returned to the building. First Deputy Mayor Randy Mastro said the wounded officer and his family were doing well. The officer, a four-year NYPD veteran assigned to the 73rd Precinct, was treated at Brookdale University Hospital. Two other officers responding to the incident were injured in a vehicle crash and were also expected to be OK, officials said.
Authorities identified the homicide victim as 41-year-old Leroy Wallace, who was found on the sidewalk near Linden Boulevard with a fatal gunshot wound. A spent shotgun shell discovered in the building’s vestibule led investigators to believe Wallace was shot inside before he stumbled out and collapsed. After the blast that injured the officer, the suspected shooter barricaded himself in his first-floor unit, prompting a lockdown of the immediate area. A police drone flown through a window later located the man motionless in the kitchen with a shotgun nearby, officials said. He was pronounced dead at the scene. Police said his name was not immediately released pending family notification. Investigators said preliminary information indicates a dispute between neighbors preceded the violence, but the exact trigger remains under review.
Monday’s events unfolded on Thomas S. Boyland Street between Hegeman Avenue and Linden Boulevard, a residential stretch of low-rise buildings in the 73rd Precinct. The area has seen targeted deployments in recent months following scattered gun violence. City officials noted the rapid layering of responses: EMS arriving first for the 6 a.m. call; patrol securing the scene; homicide detectives being summoned; and then, unexpectedly, the shotgun blast from inside the building. Officials said the wounded officer was alert when taken to the hospital. Ballistics teams collected the vestibule shell and the shotgun recovered inside the apartment for analysis. Detectives were also canvassing for surveillance footage and interviewing neighbors who heard the earlier argument and the later gunfire.
Investigative protocols were triggered for both incidents. The NYPD’s Force Investigation Division opened a review into the officer-involved shooting aspects of the response, standard in cases where police discharge firearms or suffer gunshot wounds at a scene. The Brooklyn District Attorney’s Office was notified and is expected to review investigative findings. The Office of Chief Medical Examiner will determine the suspect’s cause and manner of death. Detectives are building a timeline from the initial 911 calls to the barricade resolution and will trace the shotgun’s history. If charges become applicable to any surviving parties, such as alleged accomplices or those who supplied the weapon, prosecutors could move in the coming days. Officials said updates on identifications and next-of-kin notifications could come as early as Tuesday.
By late morning, police tape stretched across the block as Crime Scene Unit technicians photographed the stoop and vestibule. Residents described being woken by sirens and the thump of the police helicopter. A maintenance worker said he saw officers “holding the line” on the sidewalk outside as the building went quiet after the single thunderous blast. The commissioner visited Brookdale to check on the injured officer, who was described as in good spirits. “They did their jobs and kept people safe,” Tisch said. First Deputy Mayor Mastro thanked nearby tenants for sheltering in place as tactical officers methodically cleared the building. Patrol cars later escorted the officer’s family from the hospital as colleagues lined the entrance.
As of Monday evening, Wallace’s killing and the suspect’s death were under active investigation, with additional details on identities and the dispute expected after next-of-kin notifications. Police planned to release further updates following overnight evidence processing and briefings on Tuesday.
Author note: Last updated November 17, 2025.