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Man Fatally Shot During Break-in to Ditmas Park Home, Police Say

By  Ben Fractenberg and Aidan Gardiner | October 15, 2014 2:01pm | Updated on October 15, 2014 3:07pm

 Leonard Phillips, 69, was fatally shot by three men who broke into his Ditmas Park home, police said.
Leonard Phillips, 69, was fatally shot by three men who broke into his Ditmas Park home, police said.
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DNAinfo/Ben Fractenberg

DITMAS PARK — A group of men was still at large after breaking into a home and fatally shooting a 69-year-old man in the head Wednesday morning, police said.

Three men forced a 79-year-old woman sitting on her front porch into her Rugby Road home about 10:45 a.m. and demanded money, an NYPD spokeswoman said.

They tied her up and moved upstairs where they confronted her brother, Leonard Phillips, whom they shot before fleeing the scene, police said.

"I heard a shot. I thought it was construction," said neighbor Ruid Mohamed, 42.

Phillips was taken to Kings County Hospital and pronounced dead, police said.

His sister, whose name was not released, was not injured in the break-in, police said.

Two of the suspects ran south on Rugby Road afterwards, police said. One man wore a white hoodie with a green stripe while the other wore a black hoodie, NYPD officials said.

The third man ran north on Rugby Road. All the suspects remained at large Thursday morning, police said.

The suspects did not take anything before fleeing the scene, police said.

Neighbors were stunned by the news of Phillips violent death.

"He's a very friendly, caring guy," said Adrianne Ramsay, 49, who lived in the neighborhood for more 25 years. "He's always greeting people. This is a good neighborhood."

Ramsay said that more cafes and bars have opened in the area recently and she feared that the influx of investment has drawn a criminal element.

“I’m shocked and terrified,” said Barb Citerman, 67, who moved to the neighborhood from St. Louis four years ago to help take care of her grandchildren. "I walk at night from the subway."