Gunshots in Times Square Cause Panic as NYPD Arrests Suspect

Overview

• The shots rang out on Thursday, June 18, triggering a mass run for cover and several viral phone videos that captured the chaos.
• The NYPD said officers secured the scene, arrested a suspect and seized a firearm while closing nearby streets and disrupting transit.
• Official accounts conflict over key facts because the NYPD reported no injuries but the FDNY said one person was taken to a hospital.
• Reports differ on the precise intersection involved with the NYPD alert naming West 45th Street and 8th Avenue and other outlets citing West 44th Street and 7th Avenue.
• Times Square was unusually crowded because of World Cup gatherings and a recent Knicks parade which increased bystander exposure and made smartphone and surveillance footage central to the ongoing investigation.