Three people, including a mother and her four-year-old daughter, were struck by stray bullets in Times Square.
The shooting sent tourists fleeing in panic as NYPD officers rushed to the scene at 4:55 pm on Saturday near the intersection of Seventh Avenue and West 44th Street in Manhattan.
A 24-year-old woman was struck in the thigh, a young girl was shot in the leg, and a 44-year-old woman was hit in the foot. Police said that they are all expected to survive.
The shocking shooting that sent people stampeding in panic occurred after four men were having a heated argument in the street. One of them pulled a gun and started firing, a source told WNBC-TV.
A surveillance camera caught the moment tourists fled in panic as multiple shots rang out.
Dispatchers contacted more Emergency Services Units to respond to the scene as they closed the area.
Police said the suspected gunman fled westbound on 44th Street and is described as a black man with short dreadlocks, wearing a white soccer jersey with the number nine, and a zip-up hoodie.
This comes as shooting soars in New York City. It also marks the second time in just a month that gun violence occurred in Time Square.
According to NYPD data, shootings in NYC are up 83 percent from 2020 and 94 percent from 2019.
Mayor Bill de Blasio took to Twitter and said that he was relieved the victims were in stable condition.
“The perpetrators of this senseless violence are being tracked down and the NYPD will bring them to justice. The flood of illegal guns into our city must stop,” he tweeted.
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