NEW YORK — The accused gunman busted early Tuesday for blasting sleeping homeless men in New York and Washington, D.C., was a methodical predator who shot three victims in the nation’s capital before heading north to find his last two targets, sources told the Daily News.
“He’s very meticulous in his planning,” a high-ranking NYPD source said of the suspect nabbed in Washington after a massive manhunt. “He wore a mask and a hood and blue surgical gloves ... There was a lot of consciousness in what he did.”
Suspect Gerald Brevard III, a 30-year-old D.C. resident, allegedly killed one homeless man and wounded two more in Washington, then took a train ride to New York to kill another sleeping man and wounding one more victim. The NYPD source indicated police believe there were no other victims.
The black-clad gunman, who had a previous arrest for possession of a firearm, took precautions to insure his escape before shooting the helpless and dispossessed victims, according to the source.
“When he spotted a target, he did a full walk around the block, almost like a reconnaissance, to make sure the coast was clear so he could commit his act,” said the source.
The D.C. Metropolitan Police tweeted out news of the arrest early Tuesday, ending the search for the callous suspect.
“Due to the excellent teamwork by great NYPD investigators and our partners in the @DCPoliceDept, @ATFHQ and @FBI, the suspect wanted for multiple shootings, including two homicides, of people experiencing homelessness has been apprehended in Washington D.C.,” tweeted NYPD Commissioner Keechant Sewell.
Cops and federal agents on Monday stepped up their search for the suspect, identifying him as a lone gunman preying on both cities’ most vulnerable.
“Someone knows this person,” New York City Mayor Adams said at a joint Monday news conference with Washington D.C., Mayor Muriel Bowser. “We’re asking for the public to find him. We don’t want to lose another resident in this city, in New York City or anywhere else.”
Adams dispatched homeless outreach teams to encourage people on the streets to move to shelters.
The killer’s last known attack was early Saturday morning, when he shot a man sleeping in a doorway in SoHo in the head, killing him, police said. The man was the shooter’s second victim that morning. Only 90 minutes prior, he shot a homeless man, who was struck in the arm and survived, police said.
The gunman, captured on surveillance video wearing all black, shot three men in D.C. between March 3 and March 9. One of those victims died after being shot and stabbed multiple times. His tent was also set on fire.
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