Thousands of grief-stricken family members, colleagues and friends flooded Brooklyn Thursday to pay respects to 26-year-old NYPD officer Adeed Fayaz, a married father of two who was shot in a botched robbery last weekend.
Fayaz took a bullet to the head Saturday night when he and his brother-in-law went to buy a car the officer had arranged to purchase on Facebook Marketplace. He was not on duty at the time.
It was a botched robbery, officials have said -- and the purported vehicle seller-turned-gunman was arrested at a Days Inn in Rockland County, 50 miles away, earlier this week.
An NYPD detective assigned to the US Marshals Regional Task Force apprehended the suspect, identified as 38-year-old Randy Jones of Manhattan, using handcuffs belonging to the late officer.
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Fayaz passed away on Tuesday night. He had been taken off life support earlier in the day. Services got underway Thursday at Makki Masjid Muslim Community Center on Coney Island Avenue in Brooklyn's 66th Precinct, where Fayaz worked. The funeral followed at the same location later in the afternoon.
Fayaz’s mother cried, and every man and woman who stood outside the mosque to honor the officer felt her pain — but there are no words to numb the pain of a mother who lost her child. Each officer did what they could to help shoulder her burden.
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"Not only was he a police officer, but he was a dad. When the police commissioner and I walked into the hospital, we saw those two beautiful children. It struck us and it hurts so much. And then to listen to the painful cries of his wife," said New York City Mayor Eric Adams at the services. "Our hearts are broken. But our arms are strong. We will hold you will lift you up and show you that your son, your husband did not die in vain."
NYPD Commissioner Keechant Sewell was among Adams and many other city leaders to attend the services.
"We recognize the immeasurable importance of a husband, son, brother, nephew, police officer and father. All of these were horrifically stolen from this family. And this city," Sewell at the funeral.
The solemn remembrance came a day after bunting was hung at the 66th Precinct station where Fayaz, a five-year NYPD cop, served. A motorcade escorted the body of the slain officer from the medical examiner's office in Manhattan to a Brooklyn mosque, while many gathered to pray in Deer Park, Long Island, where Fayaz and his family lived.
Fayaz's uncle said his nephew had admired the uniform, the responsibility of being an officer, since he was a little boy. He was a rising leader in the Borough Park precinct, studying to be a sergeant with the goal of working in aviation.
"He's sleepless...When he asked him son why you are not sleeping. He said that 'I'm going to take Sergeant test that is coming up. I'm still up because I had to study.' So he studied hard," the uncle said.
"Taps" played as a flag was draped on Fayaz's coffin, followed by "America, the Beautiful" for the Pakistani immigrant who adopted the country as his own and embodied the American dream.
His local imam, along with top NYPD officials, described Fayaz as a dedicated police officer and public servant who was "protecting us, always." But he couldn't save himself from the apparent setup he walked into in East New York.
According to the investigation, Fayaz arranged to buy a Honda Pilot in Brooklyn for $24,000 on Facebook Marketplace. He initially planned to go to the sale point with his brother-in-law Friday night but that got pushed to Saturday. They rode together in the brother-in-law's vehicle to Ruby Street by McDonald's in East New York for the exchange.
The pair were met by a man in a black jacket with a beard and mustache who walked them to a driveway and jokingly asked if either was carrying a gun, officials said. They both said no, at which point officials said Jones put Fayaz in a headlock, demanded the $24,000 and pointed the weapon at the brother-in-law when Fayaz said he didn't have it.
Fayaz managed to untangle himself from the headlock, Essig said, and the gun went off. Jones allegedly kept firing at the brothers as he ran away. The brother-in-law grabbed Fayaz's weapon from its holster and fired at least six times. The suspect was not hit and got away from the scene at that point. Fayaz, though, was down.
Jones was extradited to Brooklyn from Rockland County earlier this week and pleaded not guilty to charges including murder at his arraignment Wednesday. He was ordered held without bail. Attorney information for him wasn't clear.
Investigators are now looking into whether Saturday's case may be part of a pattern.
