A man was shot and killed while he was inside a Brooklyn Chinese food restaurant late Wednesday afternoon, police said.
The incident occurred around 4 p.m. at the restaurant in a plaza near the corner of Stillwell Avenue and Avenue W in Gravesend, according to police. The victim, later identified as 22-year-old Rasard Deas, was at the New Food First Cook takeout eatery when a single shot rang out, striking him in the chest.
Deas was rushed to Coney Island Hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
Police said at least one suspect sped away from the scene in a red sedan, and were unsure of what the motive for the shooting may have been. Neighbors said that gunshots are not uncommon on the corner that has been plagued by crime.
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An investigation is ongoing.
New York City Mayor Eric Adams said earlier in the day that while the flood of guns form other states continues to drive crime, shootings have been decreasing weekly — down 30 percent last month compared to the same time last year.
"These crime waves are attached to a small number of New Yorkers that we can't continue to protect," Adams said Wednesday. "They say our city's a safe haven for shooters and dangerous people. It must be a safe haven for innocent New Yorkers."
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The mayor credited increased patrols in the city's most violent neighborhoods for reducing the number of shootings, as well as more patrols on the subways.
