NEW YORK — An off-duty New York City police officer who was shot in the head during a botched robbery died Tuesday, the police commissioner said as officials also announced a murder charge against a suspect.
Officer Adeed Fayaz, 26, was shot Saturday in Brooklyn, where he and his brother-in-law went to buy a car posted on Facebook Marketplace from a man later identified as the alleged shooter, authorities said.
“Police Officer Adeed Fayaz was a father, a husband, a son, and a protector of our great city,” NYPD Commissioner Keechant Sewell said in a social media post Tuesday evening. “Our Department deeply mourns his passing, and his family and loved ones are in our prayers.”
Fayaz's family and dozens of police officers gathered outside a Brooklyn hospital Tuesday evening as his body was loaded into an ambulance and driven away in a procession.
Police officials said earlier Tuesday that Randy Jones, 38, was arrested at a suburban motel Monday in connection with the shooting. Tuesday night, authorities announced Jones was charged with murder and attempted robbery. It was unclear if Jones has a lawyer who could respond to the allegations.
Fayaz, married with two young children, agreed to meet Jones on Saturday to buy a car for $24,000, Chief of Detectives James Essig said at a news conference. When Fayaz and his brother-in-law arrived, Jones asked “jokingly” if the men were armed, Essig said. Jones then put Fayaz in a headlock and demanded the money, the chief said.
Fayaz said he didn't have the money, Essig said, and Jones pointed a gun at Fayaz's brother-in-law. Fayaz broke free from the headlock and Jones shot him in the head, Essig said.
Jones ran, firing more shots at he fled, Essig said. The brother-in-law grabbed Fayaz's gun from his hip and fired several shots as well, he said. The brother-in-law was not injured.
Jones drove off in a 2011 BMW that was registered to his mother, Essig said.
Jones was arrested Monday at a Days Inn in Nanuet, about 35 miles north of New York City. A woman and five children ages 6 months to 11 years were with him at the motel, Essig said. Police detained Jones using Fayaz's handcuffs, Essig said.
