Off-duty New York officer fatally shoots woman, injures another before turning gun on herself

Authorities in Rochester said an off-duty New York police officer fatally shot a woman and injured another victim before she killed herself. The deceased officer, identified as 29-year-old Tiffani Gatson, was with the Greece Police Department, NBC News reported. Authorities said the incident happened at a Rochester home on Monday night. 

Gatson had been with the Greece Police Department for about 3 years. The department said she was off duty when the incident occurred. The other victim who survived the shooting was also a woman.

In a statement, Rochester police said they went to the residence after they received a “domestic related altercation” report. When officers arrived, they found Gatson, as well as the two other women with gunshot wounds, the state attorney general’s office said, adding that they were all outside the residence. The state attorney general’s office is mandated to investigate officer-related crimes.

The deceased victim, identified as 27-year-old Angely Solis, died at the scene. The other woman was also shot multiple times, but her injuries were said to be non-life-threatening. She was subsequently transported to the hospital for treatment. 

Gatson, who turned the gun on herself in the aftermath of the incident, was also transported to a hospital where she was later pronounced dead. The attorney general’s office said the gun that was found at the crime scene was not the deceased officer’s service weapon.

And though WHEC reported that the women Gatson shot are related, police could not properly specify the relation the deceased officer had with the victims. In 2019, Gatson became the first African-American woman to be hired by the Greece Police Department.

“On behalf of the Town of Greece Police Department, I would like to express our collective sorrow and grief with respect to last night’s events in the City of Rochester,” Greece Police Chief Michael Wood said in a statement.

“Unfortunately, we have seen events of this nature occur all too frequently and struggle to find answers in the aftermath. The effects are far-reaching, from those who have lost loved ones to others throughout law enforcement organizations when a police officer commits such a horrible act, to our entire community.”