Police said three men fled in a dark-colored BMW after the early morning encounter in Hamilton Heights.
NEW YORK CITY, NY — An off-duty NYPD officer fired one round at three men Tuesday morning in Hamilton Heights after police said she saw them trying to steal a catalytic converter from a parked vehicle.
The shooting brought a heavy police response to West 148th Street and Broadway just before the morning rush. No injuries were immediately reported, and police said it was unclear whether any of the three men were hit. The suspects fled the area in a dark-colored BMW and remained at large as investigators reviewed what happened.
The officer, a 31-year-old woman assigned to the 40th Precinct in the Bronx, was preparing to leave for work around 5:45 a.m. when a neighbor alerted her to suspicious activity nearby, according to police accounts of the incident. She drove close enough to observe the men and saw what police described as an attempted theft of a catalytic converter from a parked vehicle. The officer began recording the men from her own vehicle after they noticed her watching them. Witness Henry Swambart said the scene changed quickly after the gunfire. “We heard the shots fired, we looked around and saw a bunch of people running,” Swambart said.
Police said the three men approached the officer’s vehicle after she started recording them. Two of them reached toward their waistbands in what the officer described as an intimidating manner, according to the account given to investigators. The officer then drew her firearm and fired one round from her car. Police had not said whether a weapon was found, whether the men displayed an actual firearm or whether the shot struck a vehicle or any nearby property. The officer was not publicly identified, and police did not release descriptions of the three men beyond saying they left in a dark-colored BMW. The attempted theft happened in a busy Upper Manhattan corridor where Broadway runs past apartment buildings, storefronts and subway access points near West 148th Street.
The incident drew attention because catalytic converter thefts can unfold in minutes and often happen early in the morning or overnight, when parked cars are less likely to be watched. The devices are part of a vehicle’s exhaust system and contain metals that can be sold through scrap channels. Police departments in New York and around the country have spent years warning that the thefts can lead to violent confrontations when vehicle owners, witnesses or officers interrupt suspects. In this case, police said the officer was off duty and inside her personal vehicle when the encounter escalated. Investigators were still working to determine the full sequence, including where each person was standing, how close the men got to the officer’s car and what she could see when she fired.
The NYPD investigation is expected to examine the officer’s use of force, any available surveillance video, witness statements and the officer’s cellphone recording. Police also were expected to search for the BMW and review cameras near West 148th Street, Broadway and surrounding blocks. No charges had been announced against the three men because they had not been taken into custody. The department also had not announced any discipline or duty-status change for the officer. Police-involved shootings typically trigger internal review, even when an officer is off duty, and investigators must determine whether the officer believed she faced an immediate threat when she fired.
Swambart said officers moved into the area after the gunfire and blocked off the street as people tried to get away from the scene. He said workers nearby heard the shot before seeing people run and police arrive. “The police were running around,” Swambart said. “I think one of them was an off-duty police officer and there was a lot of extra cops that came around because of that.” The scene left residents and workers watching as officers searched the block and gathered information. Police did not report any bystanders hurt in the shooting, and the owner of the vehicle targeted in the attempted theft was not publicly identified.
The three suspects remained sought after the Tuesday morning confrontation. Police had not released their names, ages or detailed descriptions by the latest update, and the next milestone in the case is whether investigators identify the BMW or recover video showing the attempted theft and shooting.
Author note: Last updated July 4, 2026.