A Queens gunman shot dead by cops after threatening to kill Gov. Kathy Hochul was clearly mentally ill and had become increasingly unhinged in recent years, neighbors told The Post on Sunday.
Raul Hardy, 60, was killed by around 100 NYPD bullets on Saturday after he threatened to “blow up” the world and “change the government” by assassinating Hochul – then opened fire on cops.
Neighbors said Hardy had become increasingly erratic since his mother’s death.
“He was fine until three years ago when his mother died,” said a resident who asked not to be identified. “Now he says the same shit, crazy bullshit, shouting. We hear it every day now.
“I don’t want to think about it,” said the neighbor. “It’s sad.”
Another neighbour, a 38-year-old mother, called the shooting “heartbreaking”.
“His erratic behavior was becoming more frequent and I was worried about him,” she said. “I didn’t know who to contact. I don’t know his family.
“He seemed like a nice person initially, but he didn’t go to work,” she said. “He was hanging out in the back of his garage, and lately he’s had episodes where he’s started swearing and talking to himself. He certainly suffered from a mental illness.
The woman called Saturday’s fatal shooting “intense.
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“It was intense and the shooting wouldn’t stop,” she said. “My son was in his high chair when it started, I picked him up and threw him on the floor. … It’s really heartbreaking.
“He always waved and said hello to us and my son when we came home. He helped the neighbors. He would help clean up the backyards.
Police said they responded to the Cambria Heights neighborhood around 6 p.m. after receiving numerous threatening 911 calls from Hardy.
“He made it clear that he was going to blow the heads off the first police officers he saw,” NYPD Patrol Chief Jeffrey Maddey said during a press briefing. “Shortly after that, he made another 911 call, and he basically said the same thing again.”
Police said Hardy also threatened to kill Hochul in one of the rants.
Officers swarmed the neighborhood and approached Hardy’s home with firearms, according to Maddrey.
Hardy walked out of the 116th Avenue home refusing to show his hands or respond to police, Maddrey said – with the suspect then opening fire on cops.
Six of the officers returned fire and struck Hardy, fatally wounding him, he said.
The cops attempted to revive Hardy, to no avail.
Law enforcement sources said Hardy had previously suffered multiple domestic incident busts.
The shooting took place about an hour before Brooklyn police shot and killed another man after he fled a traffic stop and opened fire on police.
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