NYPD Officer Shot Dead While Sitting in Vehicle by Man With History of Violence Against Cops

Officer Miosotis Familia, 48, and her partner were in a mobile command post when Alexander Bonds fired one round, striking her in the head, cops said.

An NYPD officer has been killed in the line of duty after a man with a history of violence against cops opened fire on the 12-year veteran and her partner as they sat in a police vehicle in the Bronx, officials said.

Officer Miosotis Familia, 48, and her partner were stationed near E. 183rd Street and Creston Ave. Wednesday when the alleged gunman — identified by police as Alexander Bonds — fired one round into the mobile command post, striking the mother of three in the head, authorities said.

 

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The pair was stationed in a RV-sized truck used as a communications hub during major events, including the citywide Fourth of July celebration. 

“The city was celebrating our Independence Day," Mayor de Blasio said during a press conference after the shooting. "One of those days we look forward to each year. The NYPD did an extraordinary job keeping our city safe... and tragedy struck."

Familia’s partner immediately began yelling into his police radio for help, screaming: “Shots fired! I need a f***ing bus! 10-85, 10-85! My partner’s shot! My partner’s shot! My partner’s shot! Hurry up central!”

Familia was critically wounded and rushed to St. Barnabas Hospital, where she died.

“NYPD PO Miosotis Familia has been assassinated in an unprovoked attack on cops assigned to keep NYers safe,” Commissioner James O’Neill tweeted. “Keep her family in your prayers."

A sergeant and a police officer in the area later confronted Bonds, who was shot dead by the officers after he drew a silver revolver, police said.

The firearm was recovered at the scene, officials said.

A bystander was also shot during the incident. That person has been listed in stable condition.

Bonds had a history of aggression against law enforcement, having been arrested in 2001 for assaulting a police officer with brass knuckles, the New York Daily News reported.

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He was paroled in 2013 after serving seven years for a robbery in the Syracuse area, online records show.

He also reportedly spoke critically of police on social media, commenting that officers in Oakland, Calif., were wrong to stop a child riding a bicycle.

Surveillance footage captured Bonds, 34, marching toward Familia’s vehicle "with purpose" seconds before the fatal attack, The News reported.

"Let's be clear. This was nothing less than an assassination of a police officer,” a police source told the paper. “Our understanding is she was filling out her memo book and he walked out and fired one round."

Familia was devoted to her three children — a 20-year-old daughter and 12-year-old twins — and took care of her elderly mother, according to reports.

She spent five years as a nurse at New York University and two years working for the American Red Cross before going on to become one of New York’s Finest in 2005.

“Fully knowing the dangers that she faced, she suited up in uniform every day and stood tall against those who threaten and terrorize the good folks of the Bronx,” said Patrolmen’s Benevolent Associated President Patrick Lynch.

The Bronx native was raised alongside her nine siblings by a loving family with roots in the Dominican Republic, devastated relatives told the New York Daily News.

She celebrated her heritage, joining the NYPD’s Dominican Officers Association, where she was always willing to put others first, as she did in every other aspect of life.

“She was always overextending herself to people,” President Raysa Galvez said. “Always willing to help. Just look at her face. She was humble. That’s who she is.”

In the wake of Familia’s death, the NYPD announced it had begun installing bullet-resistant windows in police vehicles, The News reported. No other police department in the country has ballistic windows.

Since the NYPD received its first shipment of 500 pairs of windows two weeks ago, officials have outfitted 91 cars with the potentially life-saving panels.

Current plans do not include replacing the windows of mobile command centers.

The program to outfit police vehicles with more protection was initiated in 2016 under then-Police Commissioner Bill Bratton following the assassination of Officer Brian Moore, who was shot dead while sitting in his patrol car on May 2, 2015.

At the time, ballistic panels were attached to the doors of 60 police vehicles. After receiving an overwhelmingly positive response, officials explanded the program, which has gone on to attach ballistic panels to the doors of 2,200 vehicles, the News wrote. 

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