Man on scooter kills 1, injures 3 in Brooklyn, Queens shootings

July 8, 2023, 6:38 p.m.

Authorities say the spree began in Cypress Hills, Brooklyn, where a 21-year-old man was shot in the shoulder at Ashford Street and Arlington Avenue.

The scooter police recovered in Queens after multiple shootings over the weekend.

A 25-year-old man has been taken into police custody after a shooting spree that took place across Brooklyn and Queens on Saturday morning, according to the NYPD.

A 25-year-old man has been taken into police custody after a shooting spree that took place across Brooklyn and Queens on Saturday morning, according to the NYPD.

The police charged Thomas Abreu with murder, two charges of attempted murder and six counts of criminal possession of a weapon. Abreu’s attorney information was not immediately available.

Police said he had been randomly firing a gun while riding a scooter, and that he had shot four people, killing 86-year-old Hamoo Saeidi.

Authorities said the spree began in Cypress Hills, Brooklyn, where a 21-year-old man was shot in the shoulder at Ashford Street and Arlington Avenue. He was taken to Brookdale Hospital and is expected to survive, according to police.

Less than 20 minutes later, the NYPD said, the same attacker shot Saeidi in the back at 108th Street and Jamaica Avenue in Richmond Hill, who was taken to Jamaica Hospital Medical Center and pronounced dead. Police also said the attacker had randomly fired at a group of people in front of a nail salon on the same block, but added that nobody was struck.

A short time later, a 44-year-old man was shot at Hillside Avenue and 126th Street, which was immediately followed by another shooting of a 62-year-old man on Jamaica Avenue and 134th Street, the NYPD said. Both were taken to Jamaica Hospital, where the 44-year-old remains in critical condition, according to police.

On Sunday afternoon, the police identified a sixth victim: a 40-year-old man who was standing at the intersection of Jamaica Ave and 131st Street. He did not sustain any injuries, the police said.

Joseph E. Kenny, assistant chief of the NYPD’s Detective Bureau, said that 9 millimeter shell casings were found at each scene, and that a pistol of the same caliber was found in the 25-year-old suspect’s scooter, along with an extended magazine and additional ammunition.

This story has been updated with additional information.