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2 killed, 8 injured in shooting near Empire State Building

Andrew Mach, Shimon Prokupecz and Jonathan Dienst, NBC News

Aug. 24, 2012

COMMENT:

All of these stage shootings are a prelude to the next phase of terror that US Corp has panned for the American Cattle. The next phase will be mass arrest and summary on-site-executions. Even with this display of government gone wild, it is doubtful that the majority of Americans will even notice or care. The attitude of the majority is, "if they are not bothering me, why should I get involved or care about what happens to them".

As the street entertainment ramps up, and Mr. and Mrs. America start seeing it right outside their windows, they will care, not about their neighbors so much, but about how many of their neighbors might still be left, before getting to Mr. and Mrs. superficial.--Rod Remelin

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2 killed, 8 injured in shooting near Empire State Building

A disgruntled ex-employee of a women’s accessories business gunned down a former co-worker and then died in a hail of police bullets Friday morning outside the Empire State Building, officials said.

Eight bystanders were grazed or shot -- all of them, apparently, by police bullets, sources said.

The suspected gunman, Jeffrey Johnson, 58, who was laid off a year ago, approached a former co-worker on the street and shot him three times, killing him, NYPD Commissioner Raymond Kelly said.

Johnson's victim was not officially identified, but a law enforcement official told NBC News he was Steven Ercolino, a vice president at Hazan Import, where Johnson had worked until last year.

A police report from last year said that on April 27, 2011, Johnson threatened Ercolino, saying, "I am going to kill you."

A construction worker who witnessed the shooting incident Friday at 10 W. 33rd Street followed Johnson as he walked away, Kelly said. The construction worker alerted police, who confronted Johnson. He turned his .45-caliber pistol on the officers and was killed as they opened fire. Police fired at least 14 times, Kelly said.

More coverage at NBCNewYork.com

Kelly said that some of those injured in the incident may have been hit by police bullets, adding that the injured are expected to survive.

Slideshow: Shooting outside Empire State Building

Louis Lanzano / AP

A disgruntled ex-employee opened fire Friday morning and shot 10 people, killing one. The gunman was then shot and killed at the scene.

Launch slideshow

Kelly said Johnson was a designer of women's accessories at Hazan Imports until he was laid-off in a downsizing.

Through photos and tweets, witnesses show chaos outside Empire State Building

Witnesses described a chaotic scene Friday morning on streets crowded with tourists and commuters alike.

"People were yelling 'Get down! Get down!", said Marc Engel, an accountant who was on a bus in the area when he heard the shots. "It took about 15 seconds, a lot of 'pop, pop, pop, pop, one shot after the other."

"I heard pop, pop, pop, pop, and I ran back into my offices,” Gloria Walker, another witness, told NBC News. "I ran, I ran, I ran."

Another witness, Darrin Deleuil, told the Wall Street Journal that he saw the shooter, wearing a suit and fedora shoot one victim point blank on 33rd Street between Fifth and Sixth Avenue. "He looked like an old gangster," Deleuil said. "He looked real calm to me. He made sure he didn't miss him."

The FDNY told NBC News they responded to a call about the shooting at Fifth Avenue and 34th Street at 9:07 a.m. Friday and arrived at 9:13 a.m.

The body of the gunman remained on the street, under a white sheet, in front of Heartland Brewery until it was taken to the city medcal examiner's office around noon.

The Empire State Building operators said the building was not involved in the shooting and remained open.

Please check back for more on this breaking news story. For minute-by-minute updates, visit breakingnews.com.

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