Brooklyn NYPD Captain Scott Foster decided to go home at the end of his shift Saturday morning, about forty minutes after two NYPD officers were caught in the crossfire in a Bed-Stuy shootout and transported to Kings County Hospital in Foster's precinct. The 71st Precinct Captain's decision to skip customary duties—like helping to facilitate communication between the officers' families, the NYPD, and hospital staff—were essentially "career suicide," according to a department source.
Mayor de Blasio, NYPD Commissioner Bill Bratton, Chief of Department James O’Neill and the majority of the NYPD's top brass came to the hospital that morning to pay respects and issue statements to the press. "Everyone was there,” another police source told the News. "Foster really fucked up." As a result of his absence from the hospital Saturday morning, Foster has been stripped of his gun and badge.
Two department insiders told the NY Times on condition of anonymity that Foster declined his supervisor's request for assistance. "People told him what was going on and he said, ‘I’m off duty in a few minutes,'" another source tells the News.
When asked for an explanation later, Foster reportedly said he had been sick.
The shooting broke out around 3:20 a.m. on Saturday, according to the NYPD. Officers William Reddin and Andrew Yurkiw responded to reports of shots fired near the intersection of Quincy Street and Malcolm X Boulevard in Bed-Stuy. The suspect, 34-year-old Jamal Funes, allegedly pointed a revolver at them and fled in a vehicle.
A car chase ensued, in which Funes allegedly shot at the officers from his vehicle. Funes then went the wrong way on Lexington Avenue and slammed into a marked patrol car. During the subsequent standoff with at least eight officers, Reddin was struck in the hip, and Yurkiw was struck in his protective vest at point-blank range. "It’s quite possible both officers were struck by bullets from other officers, and possibly deflected bullets," said Deputy Commissioner Stephen Davis after the fact.
Sources told the News that Foster may be demoted to lieutenant status as a result of being a no-show.
