(NationRise.com) – According to a New York Post March 25 report, a New York City Police Department officer died after being fatally shot by a career criminal in Queens during a traffic stop. The newspaper detailed that 31-year-old officer Jonathan Diller conducted a regular check on a vehicle in which a man, who was identified as Guy Rivera, was in the passenger seat. When the police officer tried to get Rivera out of the car, he suddenly pulled out a pistol and shot him in the stomach.
A witness named Deon Peters told the Post that he saw the police officer falling to the ground and yelling, “I’m hit,” after being shot. In a press conference, NYPD Chief of Detectives Joseph Kenny said that Diller asked 34-year-old Rivera to leave the car on numerous occasions before getting shot. He also told reporters that the officer was forced to get Rivera out of the vehicle as the suspect refused to do it.
In a statement, NYPD Commissioner Edward Caban said that the department was heartbroken and sent his condolences to Diller’s family. Caban also said that his killing represented the death of not only a husband and a father but also of a “hero.” The commissioner added that it was difficult for him to find “the words” to express the magnitude of such a painful tragedy.
Some media outlets reported that Rivera had 21 previous arrests and was released from prison back in 2021 after serving time for criminal possession of controlled substances. The suspect in Diller’s shooting death was also in prison from 2011 to 2014 after being formally accused of first-degree assault. He was shot in the back by police officers after shooting Diller and was taken to the Jamaica Hospital in New York City. The New York Post reported he’s currently in stable condition.
Authorities identified the driver of the vehicle where Rivera was as 41-year-old Lindy Jones, who also has some criminal records.
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