Unprovoked attack
NYPD Commissioner Bratton says the officers were recent graduates of the Police Academy assigned to 103rd Precinct in Jamaica, Queens. They were at the intersection of 162nd Street and Jamaica Ave. when the attack took place. Bratton:
[The suspect] charged at the officers with a hatchet in his hand. Unprovoked and not speaking a word, the male then swung at one of the officers with a hatchet, striking his right arm. After striking that officer, the suspect continuing swinging the hatchet, striking a second officer in the head.
Kraft is reported to have been struck in the head and Meeker was struck in the arm. Kraft was in surgery Thursday night while Meeker was examined and released. The report doesn’t mention Healey. A 29-year-old female bystander was also struck by a bullet fired by the police, as two officers opened fire and shot Thompson dead at the scene. The bystander underwent surgery at Jamaica Hospital, where she’s recovering.
Attacks police officers with hatchet
The man, as yet unidentified, is reported to walk up to the group of police officers who are posing for a photo in Jamaica, Queens, around 2 p.m. Eastern. He attacks without warning, slashing Officer Healey in the head with the hatchet. The man is shot dead at the scene by another officer. Witness:
The cop was bleeding, like, pretty horribly
Healey is taken to Jamaica Hospital Center for surgery.