A Mount Vernon police officer was found dead outside City Hall Monday afternoon.
The officer, whose name has not been released, was found shortly after 3 p.m. on Stevens Avenue and Roosevelt Square. The officer had been shot, and his body was discovered inside a car on the third floor of a parking garage across from City Hall. The Mount Vernon Police Department uses the garage to store vehicles.
Mayor Clinton Young and Police Commissioner David Chong were on the scene around 3:30 p.m. Shortly after, they covered the car with a blue tarp.
Chong says the officer had been on the force for only two years. ?The department is going through a lot right now,? Chong says. ?A young officer is dead. It is under investigation.?
Police say they are not looking for a suspect in the death. ?At this time, we feel it is not suspicious,? Chong says.
The officer, who authorities say is around 22 years old, is the second Mount Vernon officer to die in less than one year. The department lost Officer Christopher Ridley in January. The town?s PBA president, Sgt. Kevin Mandel, says the incident is very unfortunate. ?I do know [the officer] personally,? Mandel says. ?I do know his family personally ? he was an excellent police officer. ?
Mandel says the officer?s family has been notified of his death.
A portion of the parking garage has been closed while the investigation continues.
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