By Ivan Pereira
A suspected fugitive was wounded Wednesday morning when a two-state task force tried to apprehend him while he was in Cambria Heights, police said.
The unidentified 38-year-old man and young woman were approached by a group of New York and New Jersey officers at the corner of 116th Avenue and Springfield Boulevard around 7:50 a.m., according to police. During the arrest, a Suffolk County police officer fired one round into the man, striking him in the abdomen, the New York Police Department said.
“I heard a ‘pow, pow’ and I said ‘Oh, God, I hope they don’t hit me,” said Queen Limbacker, 65, who was in her apartment near the corner where the incident happened.
It was not known if the man was armed when the officer shot him.He was taken to Jamaica Hospital in stable condition, according to police.
Detectives from precincts around Queens were at the scene following the shooting.
Officers used dogs, helicopters and opened up sewer lines to comb the scene for a weapon, but none was found there.
No officers were hurt during the incident, police said. Police officials could not provide information on the female who was with the man at the time of the shooting.
Police officials did not disclose what the man was wanted for but said that a fugitive task force had been set up to catch him. Neighbors said detectives had told them that the man was wanted in a shooting last week.
“[A detective] said there was a warrant for this fellow,” said Julia Lee, 83, who was inside her apartment half a block from the corner when the shot rang out.
Reach reporter Ivan Pereira by e-mail at ipereira@cnglocal.com or by phone at 718-229-0300, Ext. 146.
