( 4UMF NEWS ) Rucker Park Shooting Injures Five:
Five people were shot last night at a basketball game at Harlem’s famed Rucker Park where ex-Knicks guard Nate Robinson was among those scrambling for safety during the chaos, authorities and witnesses said.
The mayhem broke loose just before 11 p.m. at the courts on West 155th Street and Eighth Avenue during the annual Entertainers Basketball Classic, which has featured numerous NBA superstars.
“All of a sudden the game stopped because an argument broke out in the stands,” said witness Rodney Harris Jr., 47, who was five feet from the melee.
“The next thing you know one guy reaches into his pants pocket and pulled out a gun. He fired one shot into the crowd and then another,” Harris said.
His friend’s son was playing in the game and was shot in the ankle.
“He was just an innocent bystander. It scared the living daylights out of me,” Harris said.
He said the shooter ran outside of the park onto the corner before shooting a couple more rounds.
Video of the tense scene was later posted on the website worldstarhiphop.com.
“Oh! Oh!” a woman yells as shots are fired.
Robinson was at the game but didn’t play. Witnesses said he was escorted out.
The victims – who did not suffer life-threatening injuries – were taken to area hospitals, police said.
Cops said it was not immediately clear what sparked the violence.
A spokesman for the tournament did not return requests for comment.
