Lonnie Booker, a Long Island dad of two, was killed in a targeted park shooting, and a friend’s confrontation with police forced temporary hospital visitor restrictions.
A 43-year-old father of two was fatally shot in the chest at a North Bellport park around 7:30 p.m. Tuesday in what Suffolk County police call a targeted attack by someone he knew.
Lonnie Booker was rushed to NYU Langone-Suffolk in East Patchogue, about three miles from Robert Rowley Park, and was pronounced dead. The gunman fled. No arrest has been made in the homicide. Booker’s friend then pushed an officer at the hospital while trying to get inside, resisted arrest, and triggered temporary emergency-room visitor limits.
The New York Post reported the shooting and the hospital confrontation that followed, drawing on Suffolk County Police accounts and local officials.
Police Commissioner Kevin Catalina said surveillance video captured the suspect leaving the scene in a red sedan. Detectives are still seeking the public’s help. Booker was the first person shot this year in the Fifth Precinct.
Catalina described the killing in plain terms.
Suffolk Police Commissioner Kevin Catalina said:
"It appears that it is a targeted attack, and that the victim and perpetrator knew each other,"
He also stressed the cost of any gun violence in the precinct.
Catalina said:
"one homicide victim is one too many"
And he added that “one shooting victim is one too many.” The Homicide Squad is handling the case. As of the latest police update, no one had been charged in Booker’s death.
That leaves a father of two dead, a suspect still at large, and a park already under pressure from after-hours problems now marked by a memorial where friends and family have gathered.
Emmanuel Mayo, 37, followed Booker to NYU Langone-Suffolk. Police say Mayo pushed an officer while trying to enter the hospital, then resisted when officers moved to arrest him.
He was charged with second-degree harassment and resisting arrest. The hospital responded with temporary visitor restrictions on the emergency department.
An NYU Langone spokesperson said:
"Temporary visitor restrictions to the emergency department were implemented last night as a precautionary measure to ensure the safety of our staff, patients, and visitors,"
The same spokesperson said clinical care continued without interruption and that the hospital is cooperating fully with the Suffolk County Police Department investigation.
The sequence is straightforward. A targeted shooting put a gunshot victim in the ER. A friend’s clash with police then forced the hospital to lock down visitor access to protect staff and patients. Lawful order at the hospital became another front after violence at the park.
Robert Rowley Park was not a blank slate. Brookhaven Supervisor Dan Panico told Newsday that exactly one week before the shooting, police took seven people into custody for trespassing at the park after dark. Four were held on outstanding warrants. Three received field appearance tickets.
Panico said the town had already invested heavily in the park, including security cameras, after neighbors complained about loitering after hours. Cameras and prior arrests did not stop a man from being shot in the chest on a Tuesday evening.
Those earlier trespass arrests show local officials and police had been pushing back on after-dark disorder. The homicide still happened in the same park. The suspect still got away in a red sedan caught on surveillance.
Booker’s cousin, Earl Parker, spoke about the man who was killed.
Earl Parker said:
"My cousin was an outstanding guy, and boom, he shouldn’t have died like that,"
Parker’s words match the basic public facts police released: a 43-year-old father of two, shot in a place where neighbors had already complained about after-hours activity, by someone authorities say he knew.
A memorial went up at the park. Friends and family gathered there after the shooting. The investigation remains open. Suffolk County Police are asking anyone with information to contact the Homicide Squad.
The verified picture is limited and hard. Booker was shot in the chest around 7:30 p.m. Tuesday at Robert Rowley Park in North Bellport. Police say it looks targeted and that victim and shooter knew each other. Surveillance showed a red sedan fleeing. Booker was pronounced dead at NYU Langone-Suffolk. Mayo was charged after the hospital confrontation. Visitor restrictions went up as a safety step. Patient care kept running. No one is in custody for the murder.
Catalina’s line that one shooting victim is one too many sits next to the record of the prior week’s trespass sweep and the town’s camera investment. Enforcement happened. The park still became a homicide scene. The killer still walked free for now.
For taxpayers and families who use public parks, the gap is clear. Prior complaints, cameras, and seven trespass collars in a single night did not prevent a targeted killing. A father of two is dead. His friend faces harassment and resisting charges. Hospital staff had to tighten access so they could keep treating patients. The person who fired the shot has not been caught.
When a known-to-the-victim gunman can kill a dad in a town park and drive off, the public is left with an open homicide file and another reminder that soft spots in street-level order get filled by violence.
