In the borough of Queens, a 27-year-old Black man named Bassiana Lawrence was fatally shot on the afternoon of Sunday, September 26, 2021. The incident occurred around 4:36 p.m. inside an apartment building at 331 Beach 32nd St. in Far Rockaway, a location just six blocks from his own home on Beach 26th Street. Officers from the 101st Precinct responded to a 911 call about the shooting and discovered Lawrence inside an elevator with multiple gunshot wounds to his torso and arms.
Emergency medical services arrived at the scene and quickly transported him to the nearby St. John's Episcopal Hospital. Despite their efforts, Bassiana Lawrence was pronounced dead a short time later. The investigation into the shooting began immediately, with detectives working to understand the circumstances that led to the violent encounter. At the scene, investigators found shell casings and a gun. Reports indicated that Lawrence had been shot a total of seven times.
In the months following the shooting, the New York City Police Department continued to search for those responsible. As of early 2022, no arrests had been made in the case, and a clear motive for the attack had not been publicly identified. Authorities released grainy surveillance footage that captured two male suspects fleeing the scene in the hopes that the public could help identify them. The police have urged anyone with information regarding the shooting to come forward as the investigation into the death of Bassiana Lawrence remains ongoing.
