Two police officers were shot Thursday in a building inside the Melrose Houses housing development in the Bronx.
NYPD First Deputy Commissioner Benjamin Tucker said three police officers were conducting a patrol in the sixth-floor stairwell at a building at 320 East 156th Street, which is part of the Melrose Houses, at around 8 p.m. Thursday.
According to Tucker, the officers encountered two individuals in the stairwell. Tucker says one of those two individuals then shot two of the officers, one male officer and one female officer.
Tucker said after the suspect shot the officers, the suspect fled into an apartment on the seventh floor. According to Tucker, officers that responded to the scene found the suspect dead of an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound inside the seventh-floor apartment.
According to police, one of the officers was shot in the face and the other was shot in the abdomen.
The two police officers were taken to Lincoln Hospital.
Police say the injuries of the officers who were shot are not life-threatening. Mayor Bill de Blasio said the officers were alert and communicating.
Two on-duty police officers have been shot in the Bronx tonight. Current conditions are not life threatening at this time. Updates to follow
— NYPD NEWS (@NYPDnews) February 5, 2016
One suspect was found dead with an apparent self inflicted gunshot wound, several suspects in custody & 2 guns recovered.
— NYPD NEWS (@NYPDnews) February 5, 2016
Police say the officers are assigned to Housing Bureau PSA 7 and have two years on the force.
Tucker said a semi-automatic firearm and a shotgun were recovered at the scene.
According to Tucker, several people were taken to the 40th Precinct for investigation.
The second individual encountered in the stairwell is in police custody, according to Tucker.
The investigation is ongoing.