CORONA, Queens (PIX11) --- A worker confronted two suspects who stormed in before one of the gunmen opened fire inside a busy barbershop in Queens, according to police and video.
The suspects were shooting at an unknown person when shots rang out inside the Langumas El Cache Barbershop at 103-17 Roosevelt Ave. in Corona at around 5:45 p.m. Friday, police said. No one was hit.
The barbershop's surveillance video showed people in hoodies running into the business before one of the workers intervened as customers and barbers fled the store or ducked for cover.
Before the incident, a man holding a red jacket standing by the door noticed the perpetrators and ran to the back of the store as they came in, according to the footage. That's when one of the workers held back the suspect in the white hoodie while his accomplice, dressed in a black hoodie, headed for the back of the store and fired a few rounds, the video showed.
The suspects then ran out of the barbershop, and remained at large as of Monday morning, police said.
Local officials said the shooting was gang-related and the barbers were protecting a man who sought cover in their store.
"It's a miracle no one was mortally wounded in the packed shop," former Councilmember and District Leader Hiram Monserrate said in a statement.
Advocates are calling for more police presence in the troubled Roosevelt Avenue neighborhood ahead of a meeting with the barbers on Monday afternoon.
The area has been riddled with crime and prostitution, angering local residents and forcing the NYPD last month to start a task force to tackle the urban crime zone. “Operation Restore Roosevelt” is a 90-day crackdown focusing on Roosevelt Avenue from 74th to 111th Street.
"We are clear that these police officers need to stay in place on Roosevelt Avenue beyond the 90 days," Ramon Ramirez-Baez of the Let’s Improve Roosevelt Avenue Coalition said.
The area patrolled by the 115th Precinct has seen a spike in almost every major crime category, including murder, rape, robbery, felony, assault, burglary, grand larceny, and shootings this year compared to 2023, according to NYPD data.
Submit tips to police by calling Crime Stoppers at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477), visiting crimestoppers.nypdonline.org, downloading the NYPD Crime Stoppers mobile app, or texting 274637 (CRIMES) then entering TIP577. Spanish-speaking callers are asked to dial 1-888-57-PISTA (74782).
Mira Wassef is a digital reporter who has covered news and sports in the NYC area for more than a decade. She has been with PIX11 News for two years. See more of her work here.
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