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NYPD Officer Who Intervened In Deadly Queens Convenience Store Shooting Honored

NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- A Queens neighborhood came together Saturday to honor an NYPD officer.

He was off-duty when he took down a gunman in a convenience store shooting.

Police officer Jason Maharaj was recognized by multiple community organizations in Ozone Park.

Off-Duty NYPD Officer Muharaj Tackles Gunman At Queens Smoke Shop
(credit: Twitter/@NYPDShea)

Back on Oct. 26, Maharaj was inside the Craft Beer Lotto Cigar Store on Crossbay Boulevard.

He confronted a man who police say had just shot an employee.

MORE: Surveillance Video Shows 'Nothing Short Of Heroic' Actions Of Off-Duty NYPD Officer Maharaj, Who Intervened In Fatal Queens Shooting

"It was crazy, scary. It was like a split-second decision, what I had to do," Maharaj said.

Maharaj apprehended the suspect before more officers could arrive and make an arrest.

The employee, 26-year-old Mohmediyan Tarwala, was killed.

The suspect, 63-year-old Steven Cohen, faces charges for murder and possessing a weapon.

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