The teenage gunman shot by police in Brooklyn yesterday was firing blanks, police said.
Gino Mercado, 16, and his cohort James Capeles, 22, were both arrested on charges of criminal possession of a weapon and attempted assault on a police officer after they were nabbed yesterday for shooting a gun loaded with blank cartridges, police said.
“Mercado is the one with a fully operational Ruger 22 caliber revolver, that we subsequently learned was using...blanks,” Browne said.
The two were on the roof of a building on Atlantic Avenue in Brownsville where Mercado was firing the gun around 9:35 p.m., police said.
Responding officers heard the shots when they were canvassing the area and went onto the roof of a nearby building, said NYPD spokesman Paul Browne.
A 32-year-old sergeant and a 26-year-old officer, quickly spotted the men one building away and repeatedly asked the teen to drop the weapon, police said
Instead, Mercado turned toward the cops with the gun still in his hand and the cops opened fire.
"The sergeant sees Mercado turning with a gun in his hand towards the officers, Mercado tells police that he's turning to throw the gun down the hatch, that he's about to throw it away," Browne said.
The sergeant fired one shot and the officer fired twice -- all three bullets struck the victim -- once in his right shoulder, once in the left forearm and once in his right ankle, police said.
The gun and several shell casings were recovered in the backyard of the building, police said.
Capeles was taken into custody at the scene and Mercado was treated and released from Brookdale Hospital, police said.
Brooklyn teen shot by cops was firing blanks at friend
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Brooklyn teen shot by cops was firing blanks at friend
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Brooklyn teen shot by cops was firing blanks at friend
