Crime drama crewman shot dead in New York

A CREW member was shot dead on the set of the popular American TV crime series Law & Order.

The 31-year-old man, who has not been named, was working on the set of

Law & Order: Organized Crime in Brooklyn when he was killed.

His role was to put up cones and secure parking spaces before filming began. The man was sitting in the passenger seat of a car that was being used to save a parking space for a film truck to use later.

At 5.15am a gunman, wearing a black hooded top, opened the door on the driver’s side of the parked car and shot him several times in the head and neck.

The motive was unclear but police said they were not ruling out that it was a row over the parking spot.

However, it was a popular filming location and local people said other parking spaces were usually available at that time in the morning.

A colleague of the worker told the

New York Post: “It was crazy. I didn’t hear an argument or nothing. It was quiet, early morning. It was just a pop. I only heard one bang, but I don’t know how many shots. I don’t even know who would do this or why.’’

As police officers arrived at the scene, local residents thought they were actors who were part of the show.

Janus Czuj, 60, told the Post: “This morning I woke up and saw the police officers, I thought it was a fake crime scene. I didn’t think it was a real tragedy. I tried to walk dogs here and saw the tape and thought, ‘Oh, it’s a movie’. But this was a real shooting.”

The show depicts a New York police detective fighting organised crime. The set worker was employed by a private contractor.

NBC and Universal Television, which make the show, said: “We were terribly saddened and shocked to hear that one of our crew members was the victim of a crime early this morning and has died as a result. We are working with local law enforcement as they continue to investigate. Our hearts go out to his family and friends.”