The ‘hero’ policeman who died saving lives during NYC skyscraper shooting

A father who was a police officer on duty is one of four people who were killed during a shot attack in an office building in a lively neighborhood in New York.

Didarul Islam, 36, was shot down while ensuring the safety of the site on Park Avenue. The officials said he had migrated to the United States from Bangladesh, had two children and that he was waiting for a third with his pregnant wife. He died “a hero”, they said.

Paying tribute to the late officer, the mayor of New York, Eric Adams, said that he “did what he was doing best … save lives. He protected New Yorkers”.

Three civilians, two men and a woman, were also killed, said Adams. The details about them were not made public. Another man is in critical condition.

The only suspected shooter Shane Tamura, a 27-year-old man from Nevada, also died of a self-inflicted shot injury, officials said.

He had “documented mental health history” and his potential reason is unknown.

Tamura would have first fired on Islam first when he entered the skyscraper at 345 Park Avenue. He then attacked the others, going up to the 33rd floor of the building before turning his weapon on himself.

A position on the account of the New York Police Department (NYPD) on X said that Islam “represented the best in our department”, and said that it protected the New York from danger when his life was tragically shortened “.

At a press conference on Monday, city police commissioner Jessica Tisch said that the late officer had served in the 47th district of NYPD in the Bronx.

She said: “He was doing the job we asked him to do. He put himself in danger. He made the ultimate sacrifice.” Tisch continued: “He died as he lived – a hero.”

During the conference, Adams said that the late officer was “a real Blue York, not only in a uniform he wore, but in his mind and energy to love this city”.

The mayor said he had met the family of Islam after the attack and expressed his admiration for the late officer, who had served in his work for more than three years.

“He was his father’s only son,” said the mayor. “I think of Jordan, my child, and it is unimaginable to undergo a loss of this magnitude.”

Members of the Bangladaise community of Islam in the Bronx spent on Monday evening visiting the officer’s home, which he shared with his family and parents, reported the New York Times.

They described in the newspaper how Islam had emigrated to the United States and ensured the security of a school before becoming a police officer. They said their friend had been an active member of his mosque who had supervised young men in the region.

One of the mentories of Islam, Marjanul Karim, explained why Islam had left school to work in a profession considered to be less safe. “He wanted to leave a legacy for his family, something they could be proud of,” Karim said.