Summary A plainclothes police officer died Monday, two days after being shot in the head in New York.
NEW YORK (AFP) - A plainclothes police officer died Monday, two days after being shot in the head in New York, officials said, hailing his dedication to serving America s biggest city.
Brian Moore, 25, was shot in Queens on Saturday while inside his unmarked car with another police officer.
New York Police Commissioner Bill Bratton told reporters that Moore s death was "a great loss to this profession and to this city," calling the slain cop "an extraordinary young man."
Mayor Bill de Blasio said that Moore -- who died at the Jamaica Hospital in Queens, where he was rushed after the shooting -- "made the ultimate sacrifice in service to the people of New York City."
"For five years, Brian served with distinction and he put his life on the line each day to keep us all safe," de Blasio said in a statement.
A man identified as Demetrius Blackwell, 35, was arrested shortly after the shooting.
The suspect, who was on foot, allegedly opened fire on the police officers when they tried to follow him.
Moore is the fifth police officer to be shot in New York and the third to die in the past five months.
On Twitter, the police chaplain s office posted a message of prayer "for the repose of the soul of our brave officer Brian Moore, may eternal rest grant unto him O Lord."
His death comes at a time of racial tensions and protests over police brutality, most recently in the case of a black youth who died April 19 from injuries suffered while in police custody in Baltimore.
