Nicole Brown
amNewYork, New York
NEW YORK — A woman was arrested after she hit two NYPD officers with her car and led them on a pursuit down the FDR Drive in Manhattan Thursday night, a police official said.
Two officers stopped Veronica Jagdeo, 23, in a black BMW sedan with tinted windows at 96th Street and Second Avenue on the Upper East Side at about 8:50 p.m., Chief of Department Terence Monahan said at a news conference Friday.
The officers approached the vehicle on either side and while interviewing Jagdeo, they noticed a strong odor of marijuana, Monahan said. Jagdeo then drove off toward the FDR Drive, striking one officer in the left elbow and the other officer in the right hand, Monahan said.
Officials believe there were three passengers in the car with Jagdeo, including one, identified as Jason Mohammed, 26, who was being held on a parole warrant.
The officers got in their vehicle and followed Jagdeo southbound on the parkway for nearly five miles until she came to a stop near East 15th Street.
The officers got out again, but as they were approaching, Jagdeo reversed, nearly striking one of the officers and hitting their vehicle, Monahan said. One of the officers then fired six rounds at the car as it drove past him.
That officer may have fired his weapon “in violation of department guidelines” and has been placed on modified assignment, Monahan said. The guidelines say officers can only shoot at vehicles if they are coming toward them or if they present an immediate threat to others, the chief explained.
Jagdeo and the passengers abandoned the car near East Houston Street on the Lower East Side. She was later arrested and charges were pending.
Both officers were treated for their injuries and were expected to be OK.
A section of the FDR Drive was closed for part of the night as police investigated, but was reopened.
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