By Trevor Kapp and Wil Cruz
DNAinfo Staff
BROOKLYN — An off-duty NYPD lieutenant shot and killed an armed suspect in Cypress Hills early Thursday, dramatically stopping a mini crime spree that included a carjacking and a robbery, police said.
Christopher Kissane, 22, took a shot at the unidentified lieutenant about 4:15 a.m. after crashing a carjacked Chrysler minivan into a divider at the intersection of Cypress Hills St. and Jamaica Ave, police said.
He had allegedly stolen the vehicle somewhere in Queens about 15 minutes earlier.
The cop, who had pursued Kissane in his personal vehicle, shot back, hitting Kissane.
"I heard a yell, 'Stop, motherf---er, stop!' said Geraldo Rivera, 55, who lives nearby on Etna St. "Then, 'Boom, boom, boom, boom!' That was it.
"I thought it was fireworks. Then I realized it was gunshots," Rivera added. "I said, 'Jeez, somebody's out there going crazy."
Witnesses said the lieutenant made every effort to end the altercation peacefully.
"I just heard the police officer say, 'Put the gun down! Put the gun down!'" said Maria Rodriguez, 59, who lives nearby and was awoken by the drama. "Me and my son went to the window, and I saw a man, I think a police officer, holding the gun.
"He was holding a gun and pointing it at him. And he said drop the gun."
Paramedics rushed Kissane to Brookdale Hospital, where he died a short time later.
Five of Kissane's family members were outside his home in Queens Thursday, but were too distraught to comment.
Police recovered a loaded, unregistered .22-caliber handgun at the scene, they said. In addition to four bullets in the gun, he had 15 rounds in a plastic bag, cops said.
The lieutenant was uninjured but was treated for trauma at Jamaica Hospital.
Kissane, who had eight prior arrests for possession of a weapon and marijuana, had commandeered the minivan at gunpoint somewhere in Queens, police said.
At 2:45 a.m., Kissane allegedly tried to rob someone at gunpoint in Queens. Ten minutes later, he tried to carjack another vehicle — and even shot at the car as the driver escaped, police said.
"He could've killed a kid, anyone," said John Rodriguez, president of the 75th Precinct Community Council. "You can't be pulling out guns on police officers. It's unacceptable.
"Sadly, someone lost their life," he added. "But at the end of the day, this guy was up to no good."
