Overview

• A 17-year-old opened fire after a verbal dispute near West 44th Street and 7th Avenue at about 1:20 a.m., wounding three people at one of the city’s busiest tourist hubs.
• An 18-year-old woman was grazed in the neck, a 19-year-old man involved in the dispute was shot in the right foot, and a 65-year-old man was struck in the left leg; all remain in stable condition at Bellevue Hospital.
• NYPD officers on patrol nearby swiftly arrested the suspect at the scene and recovered the firearm, and charges against the minor are pending as investigators continue their probe.
• Footage circulating on social media showed panicked crowds fleeing the area, vehicles riddled with bullet holes and police securing the perimeter outside the Hard Rock Cafe.
• The incident underscores the difficulty of enforcing gun-free zones in Midtown Manhattan despite a sharp year-to-date decline in shootings citywide.