Teen reportedly admits shooting BB at New York City cop guarding the mayor, but says it was accident

(Image credit: Twitter.com/PIX11News)

published 25 August 2015

A teenager has admitted to authorities that on Sunday he shot an NYPD officer guarding New York Mayor Bill de Blasio with a BB gun, police say — but says it was a complete accident.

Officer Kelly Briant was hit in the back by the pellet while getting out of an unmarked police car outside of Gracie Mansion, New York reports, but she was not seriously hurt. She noticed a silhouette in an open window across the street, and along with a partner, went inside the luxury apartment building. She was directed to the apartment where Michael Verbitsky, 19, was staying, and he allegedly stated they needed a search warrant. Not long after, a doorman showed the officers live surveillance tape of Verbitsky and a woman leaving the building through a back exit, and they were detained.

Verbitsky is reported to have told the authorities that he was playing with a Crosman 760 Pumpmaster air rifle, which was found hidden in an air duct in the apartment, and was shocked when it went off. "It was just an accidental discharge of a BB gun by a 19-year-old," said his attorney, Howard Levine. Levine also said Verbitsky had nothing to do with other recent BB attacks that have taken place in the neighborhood. Verbitsky was arraigned Monday on eight charges, including second-degree assault, reckless endangerment, criminal possession of a weapon, and two counts of criminal mischief. He is out on $10,000 bail, paid in cash by a family member.

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Explore More

Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.

Subscribe to The Week

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox