NEW YORK — An off-duty NYPD sergeant opened fire in an after-hours Queens karaoke bar early Monday during a fight with three men who refused to tip a server, police sources said.
The server may have been involved in prostitution, the sources said.
Sgt. Raymond Wong, who is assigned to 94th Precinct in Brooklyn, intervened when the server at VIVA KTV in Flushing’s Chinatown complained she didn’t get a tip from a trio of men about 5 a.m., the sources said.
An NYPD investigation into the incident is focused on whether there was an agreed upon price for sexual services, the sources said.
In 2015 some officers from the 109th Precinct were caught up in a karaoke scandal involving allegations they got paid by bar owners in exchange for protection from police enforcement.
During Monday’s confrontation Wong was assaulted but managed to pull out his gun and open fire, letting off at least three shots. No one was hit.
Wong, who joined the force in 2006 and became a sergeant in December and so is still on probation as a supervisor, was treated at New York-Presbyterian Queens Hospital for minor injuries,
Suspects Kentvy Wong, 38, Shou Li Xu, 38, and Zhong Xiang Lin, 37, were arrested. Charges against them were pending.
Wong will likely be hit with disciplinary charges, sources said. It wasn’t immediately clear if VIVA KTV is off-limits to NYPD members.
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