Harlem 'ambush' suspect Lashawn McNeil was on probation, has lengthy record: NYPD

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A New York City man who is accused of fatally shooting an NYPD officer and critically wounding another Friday night had been out on probation and has an extensive criminal record, police said. 

Lashawn McNeil, 47, allegedly shot Officer Jason Rivera, 22 and his partner Officer Wilbert Mora, 27, in an apartment in Harlem after the officers had responded to a domestic dispute call. 

When officers arrived at the apartment, McNeil’s mother and other son told them he was in a back bedroom, according to authorities. The officers were then allegedly ambushed by McNeil when he kicked open the bedroom door and started firing.  

Rivera was pronounced dead at a hospital and Mora was in critical condition. McNeil was also hospitalized in critical condition after a third officer shot him twice as he tried to flee, authorities said. 

NYPD COP KILLED IN HARLEM AMBUSH ID'D AS OFFICER JASON RIVERA, 22 

McNeil was on probation for a 2003 felony narcotics conviction in New York City, NYPD Chief of Detectives James Essig said in a late-night news conference from Harlem Hospital. 

Lashawn McNeil is accused of fatally shooting an NYPD officer and wounding his partner.  (NYPD)

Arrests in other states

McNeil also has four arrests outside of New York: one in South Carolina for unlawful possession of a weapon in 1998; another in Pennsylvania for allegedly assaulting a police officer in 2002; and a felony drug charge and misdemeanor narcotics charge in 2003 in Pennsylvania, Essig said. 

NYPD Officer Jason Rivera, 22, was fatally shot Friday night while responding to a domestic dispute call.  (NYPD)

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McNeil’s South Carolina arrest was later dismissed, the New York Post reported. Essig didn’t say if any of the Pennsylvania arrests resulted in convictions. 

NYPD Officer Wilbert Mora remained in critical condition after the attack.  (NYPD)

Officers recovered a .45-caliber Glock handgun with a high-capacity magazine that was stolen in Baltimore in 2017 at the scene. It wasn’t clear how the gun came into McNeil’s hands, Essig said. The investigation is ongoing.