A knife-wielding menace was shot and injured by cops after terrorizing a New York City grocery store overnight, the NYPD said Monday.
The suspect was shot outside the City Fresh Market near 120th Street in Harlem just after 1:30 a.m. when he repeatedly refused to drop the 13-inch kitchen blade, according to cops.
The man, who is known as a regular at the spot, had been physically thrown out earlier in the day for getting into an argument inside, cops said.
The knife the NYPD confiscated from a suspect who kept pointing the knife in Harlem on Monday, April 6, 2026. DCPI
The NYPD investigates a police-involved shooting on Monday, April 6, 2026 in Harlem. Robert Mecea for New York PostHe later showed up armed with the knife and banging on a glass window of the store, said NYPD inspector Andrew Natiw, the executive officer of Patrol Borough Manhattan North.
Surveillance video obtained by Pix11 captured the man lingering outside the sliding doors and waving the weapon as workers huddled inside.
When police arrived on the scene, the man allegedly refused to drop the knife leading to the gunfire.
Surveillance video appears to show a man holding a knife outside a City Fresh supermarket in Harlem. Robert Mecea for New York PostThe knifeman took a bullet to his abdomen after he “quickly advanced toward the officers with the knife extended out,” cops said.
He was taken to a hospital for surgery and is in a critical, but stable condition, Natiw said.
Police haven’t yet released his name or what charges he’ll face, but locals in the Harlem neighborhood claimed the suspect has been a local troublemaker.
“I feel bad because the people who work here are nice people,” said longtime City Fresh Market customer Martin, 64. “Good people. They work hard. Everything clean.”
An NYPD officer patrols the City Fresh supermarket where a police-involved shooting occurred on Monday, April 6, 2026. Robert Mecea for New York PostAnother resident, Deborah, 41, said she’s seen the alleged perp before and he appears “always on something.” He also lives at a shelter on 125th Street, she said.
“You can’t reason with somebody who’s coming at you with a knife,” Deborah said.
Supermarket worker Victor Manuel Zabala said his colleagues “told me about the problem with the guy,” saying he was told he was booted on suspicion he was stealing before he returned with a knife.
“Yes, yes, he come[s] a lot to buy here. Almost every day,” Zabala said.
“I don’t know what happened to him yesterday. He’s a good guy. He’s a normal guy. I don’t know what happened to him that he’s coming back with violence.”
