A college student was shot in the stomach after he bumped into a man in Queens borough of New York City. A video of the shocking incident was posted on Twitter by the police Wednesday.
The incident happened on Monday at a Queens deli when the student Malachi Capers walked in and bumped into Jeffrey Thurston. This led to an altercation between the two men, following which, Thurston punched Capers in the face and tried to flee from the deli.
In the video posted by Chief of Detectives Rodney Harrison, the 20-year-old student can be seen running after Thurston and getting hold of him outside the deli. The two get into a physical fight on the sidewalk. The video then fast forwards and Thurston can be seen pulling out a gun and shooting Capers in the stomach and fleeing the scene.
The New York Police Department arrested 27-year-old Thurston on Wednesday and charged him with attempted murder, assault and possession of weapons, CBS New York reported.
Capers was taken to Jamaica Hospital in critical condition. Doctors later said that he was stable after receiving the emergency treatment. Capers is a psychology student at Buffalo campus of the State University of New York. He was also a football player at the university until 2018 when he retired due to a shoulder injury.
Buffalo State head football coach Christian Ozolins said, "Malachi was a well-liked member of our football family during his freshman year in 2018 and has remained a friend to many in our program as he has continued his education at Buffalo State after leaving the team due to ongoing injury issues... We have him in our thoughts as we wish for a speedy and full recovery."
Capers' shooting is one of such several gun violence cases on rise in New York City in recent months. In a bid to control the crime wave, the New York Police Department launched a new strategy that included deploying more police officers to locations where the crime record was rampant. The city, which is also grappling with ongoing coronavirus pandemic, recorded 39 shooting incidents over the weekend, according to CNN.
