Police shot and killed a reputed gangbanger parolee who had just fatally gunned down another suspected gang member in the East Village early Thursday, authorities said.
The parolee, 37-year-old Earl Facey, and Richard Reid, 41, were both inside the Hayaty Lounge hookah bar on Avenue A near East 7th Street – each accompanied by a woman – when Reid and Facey got into a fight after the women they were with bumped into each other, police and sources said.
During the fracas, a bottle or glass of water was thrown, prompting a bouncer to boot all those involved out onto the street where Facey and Reid ultimately opened fire on each other, sources said.
Two uniformed officers from the 9th Precinct were on patrol inside nearby Tompkins Square Park when they heard gunshots at around 3:30 a.m. and quickly raced over to the scene.
“The officers immediately exited the park and tactically approached the location where they observed a man shooting at another male,” Chief of Department Terence Monahan told reporters.
Facey, believed to be a member of the Insane Gangsta Crips, blasted Reid — also purportedly of the Crips gang — in the torso, sources said, adding that the two men did not know each other.
The cops, who were both wearing body cams, shouted several commands for Facey to drop the weapon and “get on the ground,” but the ex-con “refused” and “kept on walking,” Monahan said, adding that “this is based off of a body-worn camera.”
That’s when the officers fired off three rounds, striking and killing Facey, who had served about seven years in prison for a prior shooting and was on parole for that.
Facey and Reid – who was not struck by police during the wild encounter — were taken to Bellevue Hospital Center where they both were pronounced dead.
Cops said a .22 caliber handgun was found underneath Facey and another .22-caliber handgun was recovered near Reid.
The pair of officers were uninjured and taken to Lenox Hill Hospital for evaluation.
“I remember the cops saying ‘get down’ or something like that. After that I heard gunshots and the guy went down. It was so fast,” said witness Jamielynn De Leon, 35, who added that before the shootout there were several men arguing outside the hookah bar.
Police officials praised the officers involved as heroes.
“This morning’s shooting underscores the courage our cops show each and every day as they run towards the danger,” Monahan said.
NYPD Commissioner Dermot Shea said in a tweet that the police-involved shooting is “another example of the bravery demonstrated by NYPD officers every day.”
“When two suspects shot at each other, our cops put themselves in harm’s way by running toward the danger,” Shea added.
State prison records show that Facey was booked at the Edgecombe Correctional Facility in upper Manhattan on a charge of criminal possession of a weapon in the second-degree on Dec. 28, 2010 and released on parole on Aug. 31, 2017.
Police say that Facey had 21 prior arrests on his record, while Reid had 14 prior arrests.
Additional reporting by Craig McCarthy, Georgett Roberts and Lee Brown
