Crime fiction became a tragic reality as a security guard for the crew of “Law & Order: Organized Crime” was shot dead on set Tuesday morning.
The victim has been named as 31-year-old Johnny Pizarro.
Mr. Pizarro was sitting in a car with a parking cone on the roof, watching over equipment trucks for the show. At around 5:15 a.m, a gunman approached the car, opened the door and opened fire, shooting the guard in the head and neck.
Another guard told the New York Daily News he witnessed the attack
“It was quiet. Just a pop and the dude ran. I looked out my side mirror window and I seen him running,” said the guard, who did not wish to be identified.
The authorities have not yet gleaned a motive, and do not know whether anyone from the production crew was on set at the time of the crime. Notices on the street mentioned that filming on an episode was set to begin at 6 a.m. Tuesday.
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Local resident Janus Czuj told the New York Post that he had “woke up and saw the police officers. I thought it was a fake crime scene … But this was a real shooting.”
In a statement reported by Variety, NBC and Universal Television said they 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.”