Hell's Kitchen Gunman Reports 'Unfounded,' Police Say After Hectic Search

HELL'S KITCHEN, NY — Police have given the "all clear" after swarming to Hell's Kitchen on Monday afternoon, responding to reports of a possible gunman in the area, an NYPD spokesman told Patch.

Multiple police units canvassed buildings on West 45th Street between 10th and 11th avenues after a call came in around 3:45 p.m. of a man with a firearm on the roof of a nearby building, the spokesman said.

However, the search ended up being "unfounded," according to police. (Want more local news from Hell's Kitchen and Midtown? Sign up for Patch's free daily newsletter and real-time news alerts.)

Streets that had been shut down during the search were reopened as of 5:45 p.m., an NYPD spokesman said.

Hell's Kitchen resident Jay Tong, who lives at 550 West 45th St., told Patch that he could see what appeared to be an NYPD sniper team camped out on a nearby roof, and that heavily armed cops were searching his building.

"I tried walking downstairs," Tong said. "But immediately, stepping out of my apartment, [an NYPD officer] with shotgun in hand around the hallway yelled at me to get back."

At first, Tong said he thought police might have been preparing for the arrival of an important person. However, he realized his building was being searched when he got an email from a building manager Monday telling residents to stay inside as police conducted their investigation, Tong told Patch.

During the search, NYPD SWAT trucks and helicopters could be seen swarming the Hell's Kitchen block, several witnesses said on social media.

"Outside my office a cop yelled at me to get off the street or I'd get shot," one Twitter user said.

Photo by Kevin/Twitter