(Photo : KENA BETANCUR/AFP via Getty Images)
NYPD officers in riot gear pour into a building at Columbia University where pro-Palestinian students barricaded themselves inside on April 30. The department has spent $53 million on overtime costs since the protests began after Hamas attacked Israel on Oct. 7.
A New York City Police officer accidentally fired his gun as officers removed pro-Palestinian protesters who barricaded themselves in a building on Columbia University's campus earlier this week, the Manhattan District Attorney's Office confirmed to media outlets.
No one was injured when the weapon dischared during the operation on Tuesday, a spokesman for Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg told the City.
The NYPD said that the officer was using his weapon "equipped with a flashlight" when he "accidentally" fired a shot, the New York Times reported.
The bullet hit a frame on the wall of Hamilton Hall suring the operation Tuesday night, police officials told the Times.
No students were nearby when the weapon discharged.
The incident is under investigation by the DA's Police Accountability Unit, which will examine the officer's body camera.
The NYPD began dispersing protesters from the building and from an encampment on the school campus Tuesday evening at the request of school officials after demonstrators illegally took over the hall.
The operation was part of a crackdown on the protests at schools across the country.
According to a tally by the Associated Press, more than 2,200 people have been arrested since April 18.
