MetroTech shaken as shots fired Wednesday morning

No one injured in incident near Starbucks and NYU Poly

August 1, 2018 Brooklyn Daily Eagle

Officers were assessing the scene at MetroTech Wednesday morning.

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Nearly three dozen officers were on the scene at MetroTech Commons Wednesday morning after shots were fired near a pedestrian plaza next to MetroTech Center and NYU Tandon.

The incident took place at 11:05 a.m., according to one witness who was looking to buy tickets to the Broadway show “Come From Away.” After hearing the gunshots, he ran inside to the TKTS Booth and then saw two NYPD officers, one man and one woman, run towards the direction of the gunshots.

That section of the MetroTech plaza was cordoned off by blue and yellow police tape as officers looked to gather more information and talk to witnesses, as confused MetroTech employees, NYU Tandon students and people coming out of the nearby Jay St. subway entrance tried to all figure out what was going on.

A law enforcement source told NBC New York that an argument between two groups of young people escalated before one opened fire. An office worker at MetroTech told NBC that there was then an order for employees to hold in place as the NYPD investigated an active shooter situation before police gave the all clear.

“At Approximately 11 a.m., a group of people were in the area of Starbuck’s, located at 6 MetroTech Center,” Peter Coyne, the managing director of public safety at the Downtown Brooklyn Partnership said in a statement. “A male removed a handgun and fired one round. The group fled the scene. No one was shot and there was no property damage as a result of this incident. NYPD called a Level 1 Mobilization and is currently searching the area for the suspect. 1 and 2 MetroTech Center temporarily implemented a ‘shelter in place’ which has been lifted.”

This story will be updated as more information becomes available.