Cooper Square Shooting Kills 1 In Attempted Murder-Suicide: NYPD

EAST VILLAGE, NY — A man shot and killed a 56-year-old woman in a possible murder-suicide at an East Village apartment building Wednesday morning, the NYPD said.

The man, 62, shot the woman in the stomach at 7:55 a.m. at 62 Cooper Square, then shot himself in the head, the NYPD said. The woman was pronounced dead at Lenox Hill HealthPlex Hospital, police said.

The man is in critical condition at Bellevue Hospital, where he's in police custody but has not yet been charged with any crimes, the NYPD said. It's uncertain whether he'll survive, the spokesman said.

Police recovered a gun from the scene of the shooting, which appeared to be a domestic violence incident, a police spokesman said. The couple knew each other but it's unclear what their exact relationship was, he said.

The shooting happened at a high-end 12-story apartment building near Astor Place, police said. It's unclear whether the shooting happened inside or outside the building.

Police aren't naming the woman until her family knows she's dead. The man will be identified once he's charged, the police spokesman said.

Evan Ross Katz, an editor at Mic.com, tweeted that he heard the gunshots on his way to work. He saw "(t)wo bodies strewn across the concrete taken to the hospital moments later."

The scene was across the street from the Great Hall at Cooper Union, a small architectural and engineering college. No one affiliated with the school was involved in the shooting, school spokeswoman Kim Newman said.

Classes in the Great Hall building are canceled until further notice, though the building is open for anyone who needs to get in, Newman said.

This is a developing story. Check back for updates.

(Lead image: Police respond to the scene of an attempted murder-suicide on Cooper Square in the East Village. Photo courtesy of Evan Ross Katz)