What to Know
- Police arrested and charged three men Saturday in relation to a shooting at a book launch party in the Flatiron District
- The suspects tried to evade the police in a black Mercedes-Benz, but were taken in for questioning after they crashed into a police vehicle
- The victim was taken to Bellevue Hospital, where he underwent surgery in critical but stable condition
Three men were arrested and charged in a shooting of a man who was attending a book launch party in the Flatiron District, police said.
Ramel Harkless, Joseph Saunders and Barry Wiles were arrested Saturday morning, police said.
Harkless was charged with assault in the first degree, criminal use of a firearm, and criminal possession of a weapon. Saunders was charged with criminal possession of a weapon in the second degree. Wiles was charged with criminal possession of a weapon in the second degree and reckless endangerment.
The 44-year-old victim was attending a book launch party near West 22nd Street between Sixth and Seventh avenues when he was approached by the three men, police said.
He was shot six times in the torso, leg and groin. The victim was taken to Bellevue Hospital in critical but stable condition and underwent surgery.
Plainclothes police officers patrolling the area in an unmarked car heard gunshots at around 1 a.m., police said. They saw the suspect run from the direction where the shots were heard, to a double-parked black Mercedes-Benz sedan. The men fled once the suspect entered the car.
Local
The officers followed the Mercedes for several blocks before it came to a halt and collided with a police vehicle. The men inside the vehicle were subsequently taken into custody for questioning.
A silver and black semi-automatic handgun was found in plain sight on the backseat floor of the Mercedes, authorities said.
Authorities are investigating whether the victim and the shooter knew each other.
