Cops are hunting the two men who left a car service driver clinging to life following an apparent robbery in Brooklyn.
The NYPD on Saturday released surveillance footage of the two hooded men, who were trying to hold up Naveed Afzal before the cabbie was shot in the head on Lincoln Place near Underhill Ave. in Prospect Heights, cops said.
Afzal was driving a wheelchair-accessible Mercedes van when he was shot in the head and the leg at about 10 p.m. Thursday, cops said.
EMS rushed the father of four to New York Presbyterian-Brooklyn Methodist Hospital where he remained in critical condition Saturday, according to police.
Investigators believe the two men had set up a pre-arranged ride through a ridesharing app. When Afzal arrived, the two men got in the backseat, pulled a gun, and tried to rob him.
After the shooting, the suspects scrambled out of the van, leaving a .380-caliber handgun behind, cops said. No arrests have been made.
The surveillance footage cops recovered shows the two suspects walking near the scene of the shooting, cops said.
Afzal, of Pakistan, dreamed of having his family join him in the U.S. and was working hard to try to help achieve that goal, his friends told the Daily News Friday.
“He wants his kids to study here because education is good in America.” Afzal’s friend Mohammad Rundhawa, 62, said inside the Brooklyn apartment he shared with the victim and another roommate, Abdul Majeed, 66.
“That’s his dream,” Rundhawa added. “‘I want my children’s good education.’”
Majeed described his friend as devoted to his family.
“Every month, every week, when they need money, they ask and he used to send it,” Majeed said.
Afzal has four children — three daughters and one son. The son is the youngest at 15, and the oldest daughter is 23. His wife in Pakistan was desperately trying to get a visa to come to the U.S. and be at her husband’s bedside.
Fernando Mateo, president of the New York State Federation of Taxi Drivers said he constantly warns his members not to pick up street hails. They should also be wary of prearranged rides on rideshare apps when the passenger wants to pay with cash. The ride, he said, could have been arranged with a burner phone, so it would be very difficult for police to track down a suspect.
Mateo also wants his drivers to have the ability to turn down a prearranged ride if the passengers are purposely obscuring their faces with hoods and surgical masks.
“If you can’t see someone’s face, [the drivers] should not pick them up,” Mateo said. “They’re hiding their face for a reason. And if you can’t ID them, the cops can’t ID them.
“This is about public safety,” he said. “This is about getting home to your family after a shift.”
The two men involved in Afzal’s shooting are described as black between 18 and 25 years old. One was last seen wearing a black hooded sweatshirt, black pants and black sneakers. The other was wearing a light blue hooded sweatshirt, gray pants and black sneakers.
Anyone with information regarding their whereabouts is urged to call NYPD Crime Stoppers at (800) 577-TIPS. All calls will be kept confidential.
