Drive-by shooter strikes bystanders in Ridgewood

The shooting occurred at the intersection of Myrtle Avenue, Cypress Avenue and Cornelia Street. Eagle photo by David Brand

By David Brand

A 37-year-old woman was shot in the ear at a busy intersection in Ridgewood Wednesday night, after she inadvertently walked between a drive-by shooter and his intended target, police and witnesses said.

Another bystander, a 20-year-old man, was also struck in the leg by a stray bullet outside the Rite Aid where Myrtle Avenue, Cypress Avenue and Cornelia Street meet. He walked into Wyckoff Hospital shortly after the shooting, police said.

The shooter was on a motorbike when he fired his gun. There were no arrests made and no information on the intended target as of 9:45 p.m., according to the NYPD. 

The perpetrators are described as four men who fled on foot and motorbikes, police said.

A half hour after the shooting, a blood-stained cloth still lay near a red pool on the sidewalk as police officers directed people away from the scene.

Gun violence has spiked in Queens in recent weeks, but the attack along the commercial strip, a few blocks from the Bushwick border, stunned passersby and nearby restaurant workers who heard or witnessed the shooting. 

“This is a quiet area. I’ve been here 40 years and I’ve never seen shootings here,” said the owner of a restaurant located near where the shooting occurred. 

“Maybe a block over here or there, but not right here,” said the man, who declined to give his name.

A blood-stained cloth lay on the sidewalk. A witness said the victim used the cloth to stanch the blood pouring from her ear. Eagle photo by David Brand

Another witness said he heard about 15 shots and looked out the window to see a woman standing up and bleeding from her head.

A worker recounted the shooting when he entered a nearby restaurant. 

“That’s crazy man. That’s crazy,” he told colleagues as he picked up a box for delivery. “That could have been me. I just crossed that street.”