Ultimate City Chase

The Ultimate City Chase

      

            NEW YORK CITY-- A Frenchman, and suspected assassin, Pierre Jeantot, 36, of Nice, France was shot and killed yesterday. NYPD narcotics officer, Jimmy “Popeye” Doyle, was put to the ultimate test in a chase through the compacted city streets after Jeantot which ended in glory when Doyle put a bullet through Jeantot’s chest.

            During the intense chase Jeantot managed to kill three innocent people before being shot down by Doyle. Doyle had chased Jeantot from 35 Street Station to the 15 Street Station.

            Betty B. Badluck, 63, of the Bronx, was the first victim, killed by a sniper rifle Jeantot was using to target Doyle. Horatio C. Hornblower, 30, of White Plains was shot on the train. The last person to be killed was 15-year veteran of the NYPD, Roland Evans, 34, of Brooklyn.

            According to eye witnesses accounts of the chase, the horrific afternoon began when Doyle was walking home through the courtyard in front of his apartment building after a day of work. Suddenly, according to witness Julie Crane, a loud bang resonated throughout the serene courtyard populated with usual city goers. Crane immediately saw an old women collapse to the concrete ground, abandoning her stroller that kept a young child. Crane said that panic had set loose, the screams of innocent people echoed along the walls that surrounded the courtyard. Crane then spotted a man out on the courtyard who ripped out a gun from the holster on his pants like a superhero. This superhero was Jimmy “Popeye” Doyle.

 “I watched this man take cover with a gun in hand and sought out the shooter as he spotted him above on the rooftop of an apartment building surrounding the courtyard,” said Crane.  “The man then scaled the brick walls along the apartment and entered the building where the shooter was. A couple minutes later I saw the same man sprint out of the building towards the street. It seemed that the shooter had gotten away.”

            According to eye witness, Stephen Lars, Doyle was seen in an orange GT swerving and speeding through traffic on 24 Street Station. Lars said he was in his car waiting in a line of traffic to go grocery shopping when he heard a car skidding and a symphony of car horns from up ahead. He said the screeches and horns got louder until all of a sudden he saw car heading straight towards his oncoming lane going at least 60 mph.

“All the cars in front of me and I began honking our horns loudly so he wouldn’t smash into us, I was scared for my life,” said Lars. “The orange GT honked back at us louder reaching closer and closer to the line of traffic. I closed my eyes and feel the hard breeze of the orange GT burst by me car somehow making it to other side of the road.”

            Meanwhile above 26 Street Station, Jeantot was making his escape on the train above the street. According to eye witness Kimberly Korb, she had seen a man suspiciously entered into her train car and proceeded to bang on the trainman’s door impatiently. Korb was one of the many other people in the train car watching Jeantot bang on the door. The man kept looking back at Korb and the others sitting down quietly on the benches of the train.

 “This man opened the door to the conductor, entered, and slammed it shut,” said Korb. “The train didn’t stop at the next stop when it should’ve which brought confused train passengers and the conductor to the front train car where I resided to see what the trainman was doing. They began to knock on the trainman’s door and all of a sudden this man came out holding a gun out at the crowd of confused people.”

            At this point the people on the train knew it was being hijacked. Korb said the conductor on the train stood in front of the crowd of people facing the man holding the gun. Korb said that the conductor told the man that he wasn’t going to get away with this and to put his gun done. The man responded “get back”, and soon after with one bullet shot the conductor in his chest. Panic then erupted inside the train car as the conductor falls like a rag doll on the trains ground. Korb then said the train broke out to sudden screeching stop.

            According to eye witness, Mark Jenkins, he saw an orange GT skid to off the road to a halt, where the train above had just stopped. He said the orange cruiser was banged up all over. He said a man proceeded to get out of the car in a rush and ran to the closest steps leading up to the train tracks.

“About a minute later of the man leaving his car I heard a gunshot,” said Jenkins.

            Doyle had succeeded in the chase and killed Jeantot with his .38 caliber service revolver from the bottom steps to the platform of the 15 Street elevated railway station.

            According to homeland security records, Jeantot entered into the country Nov. 4 after a flight from Paris, France. The New York City Police suspect that he was associated with a crime syndicate that had been laying the groundwork for a major heroin shipment from France to New York City. Two other men thought to be involved in the smuggling operation are being sought at this time.

            Ruth L. Ess, the New York City Police commissioner said that it’s unfortunate when these incidents end in a loss of life.

“We would have preferred to see Jeantot prosecuted in the courts, and we believe Doyle was close to a breakthrough case,” said Ess. “We commend Detective Doyle for his bravery and quick thinking under very trying circumstances. We will continue a vigorous and thorough investigation into what appears to be a major smuggling operation.”