A disgruntled worker killed a former colleague outside the landmark Empire State Building, triggering a wild shootout with New York City police and raising anew the issue of gun control in the United States. Nine people were wounded Friday as police chased down the suspect, Jeffrey Johnson, 53, and killed him when he drew a .45-calibre pistol on them.
New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg said that some of the injuries could have been caused by stray bullets from police, but none was life-threatening. Police fired 16 rounds at Johnson, who appeared to have fired six shots, according to The New York Times.
The blood-letting shocked New Yorkers on the bustling Midtown streets on their way to work at 9:03 am. Bystanders dropped coffee cups and scattered in all directions when the gunfire erupted, witnesses said.
Nearby, a long line of tourists waiting to buy tickets to ascend one of the world's iconic attractions - the Empire State Building's observation deck on the 86th floor overlooking the Big Apple.
Bloomberg and New York Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly credited the quick thinking of a construction worker, who chased down Johnson as he fled, for preventing an "even more tragic" situation.
The worker alerted two counterterrorist police officers - always stationed on Fifth Avenue outside the Empire State Building since the 2001 terrorist attacks - who joined the chase. As they approached, Johnson "pulled his gun from a bag and fired on them," Bloomberg said.
The spectre of such violence in the heart of New York City provoked a new round of debate over the easy availability of guns in the United States. Since July 20, 18 people have been slain in shooting sprees by apparently deranged men in the public venues of a Colorado movie theatre and a Wisconsin Sikh temple, and another 64 were injured.
The guns in the attacks, including Friday's shooting, were by all accounts legally acquired. Republican presidential hopeful Mitt Romney applauded the quick response of police: "Our hearts are touched today by people whom I know their hearts are suffering."
But Bloomberg, a political independent and outspoken advocate for gun control, has been a strong critic of both the Republican Romney and US President Barack Obama for their silence on the issue of readily available arms throughout the summer election campaign.
Friday morning, just before the shooting, Bloomberg had used his weekly radio message as a platform for his strong feelings on the issue. He conceded the argument of the pro-gun lobby that it takes a person to pull the trigger. But he said that the United States "was the only developed country in the world with this problem" of random mass shootings.
Later, after briefing reporters on the incident, Bloomberg boasted that New York City has one of the country's lowest urban crime rates but added: "We are not immune to the national problem of gun violence."
The slain New York suspect was a clothing designer who had been fired a year ago from Hazen Imports, a manufacturer of jewellery and women's apparel on West 33rd Street, police said. He and his victim, identified as Steve Ercolino, 41, had traded mutual harassment charges during the last year, media reports said.
A woman walking outside shoulder-to-shoulder with Ercolino as he was slain knew both men. She saw Johnson "pull a gun out from his jacket, and I thought to myself, 'Oh my God, he's going to shoot him' - and I wanted to turn and push Steve out of the way," Irene Timan, 35, was quoted as saying by The New York Times.
"Steve screamed, Jeff shot him, and I just turned and ran."
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