Mother used as human shield in New York City shooting that injured 6 people: Police

A 40-year-old mother was one of six people shot in a New York City convenience store when one of the suspected targets of a "brazen and heartless attack" used her as a human shield, authorities said.

The two gunmen who opened fire on a group of people Monday evening in the crowded convenience store in the New York borough of the Bronx remained at large Tuesday morning as investigators worked to identify them, according to the New York Police Department (NYPD).

The mother, whose name was not released, suffered a bullet wound to her stomach and her 12-year-old daughter was shot in the leg during the incident that also left four men with gunshot wounds, NYPD Interim Chief of Department John Chell said at a news conference Monday evening outside the G&W Grocery, where the shooting occurred.

"We had a brazen and heartless attack by two shooters who opened fire in the middle of the street and into a crowded convenience store, striking six people," Chell said. "The mother was used as a shield by the intended targets of the shooting."

The incident unfolded at around 5 p.m. when uniformed patrol officers received numerous reports of shots being fired on a group of people gathered in front of the store, Chell said.

Chell said security video reviewed by investigators captured the two alleged gunmen running across the street outside the convenience store, firing multiple rounds at several people gathered outside the store. The shooters kept firing as some of the intended targets of the shooting ran inside the store, Chell said.

The mother and her daughter were standing at the store's counter when the individuals being fired upon rushed inside as the front windows of the store were shattered by the gunfire, Chell said, who added that the store was crowded at the time of the shooting.

In what Chell described as a "cowardly" act, he said one of the men targeted by the alleged shooters bumped into the mother, grabbed her and placed her in front of him, causing her to be shot in the stomach.

The two alleged gunmen, one wearing a black Nike sweatsuit and the other dressed in a gray hooded sweatshirt, fled the scene on foot, Chell said.

Chell said that investigators were questioning the four men who were shot, who ranged in age from 18 to 21, to determine if any of them were among the group of people targeted by the two alleged shooters.

Chell said a motive for the shooting is under investigation.

Witness Beverly Taylor told ABC New York City station WABC that the grocery store and the sidewalk in front of it were bustling with people when the gunfire erupted at rush hour.

"There were 10 to 15 shots I heard and I just dropped to the ground," Taylor said.

Taylor said she didn't see who was doing to the shooting, but in the aftermath she saw the young girl who was shot.

"Whoever shot these people, they had no regard for human life," said Jamal Wilson, who works at a nearby business. "It puts fear in us. Because now we can't really come outside. I do deliveries. I don't know if it's safe for me to do a delivery tomorrow."

The latest NYPD crime statistics show that the number of shooting incidents across the city in 2024 decreased nearly 8% from 2023, while the number of shooting victims, which numbered 1,150, decreased 5.1% from the year before.

"Those numbers mean nothing when you see a horrific incident like that," New York City Mayor Eric Adams said during a news conference Tuesday.

Adams added, "It is clear we're going to find everyone that's responsible and bring them to justice."