Father Grabs Gun From Dying Son's Hands And Fires At Officers In Deadly Bronx Shootout

KEY POINTS

The father-son duo and a group of people were seen shouting and throwing bottles at each other
The son open fired at the off-duty officers and was stuck in the chest when they return fired
Surveillance video showed the father handing the gun off to a nearby woman before arrest

A police shootout in the Bronx turned deadly Sunday after a man grabbed a gun from his dying son's hand and opened fire at cops.

On Sunday around 4 a.m., Raphael Rosado, 44 and his son, Mike Rosado, 24, got into an argument with a group of people on Valentine Ave. near 180th St. in Tremont. According to surveillance footage, the father-son duo and the opposite group were seen shouting and throwing bottles at each other when the son pulled out a gun and shot a person.

Two off-duty cops who had just finished their workday spotted the gun-wielding younger Rosado and asked him to drop his weapon after identifying themselves, reported NY Daily News. However, disregarding their words, the youngster turned the gun at them and began shooting. No one was stuck, said officials.

The off-duty officers fired back and fatally stuck Rosado on his chest. Uniformed officers from the nearby precinct crowded the area once they heard the firing. After the shooting, the officers provided aid to the 24-year-old.

"The 44-year-old male then picked up the injured suspect's gun and fired rounds at the officers," NYPD Chief of Patrol Juanita Holmes said during a police briefing, reported WABC. Police fired back, but, the senior Rosado was not hit.

Watch as NYPD executives provide an update to the police involved shooting in the @nypd46pct from earlier this morning. https://t.co/e8m8OZdGTH
— NYPD NEWS (@NYPDnews) August 29, 2021

The father then left the scene and came back after walking around a block in the hopes that officers would not recognize him, reported the Daily News. At one point, he handed the gun to a woman standing nearby before police arrested him.

The son was rushed to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead.

The woman with the gun and Rosado’s intended target fled the scene soon after. Police are still looking for them.

"I wouldn’t say he was a bad (man) but he got into a lot of trouble," said a friend of Raphael Rosado to the outlet. "Sounds kind of like a father protecting his son… It’s sad but it happened."

The father had been arrested 60 times on charges including drug possession, assault and weapon possession. According to locals, he was a known troublemaker but had never been violent before. The son too had been arrested several times on minor offenses.