According to police, a rookie NYPD officer who was off-duty and had been involved in a fatal on-duty shooting last year, has died by suicide in his Staten Island home.
The officer, identified by sources as Colin Rossiter, aged 22, suffered a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head and was found with a gun next to him around 1:50 a.m. in the Woodrow neighborhood.
He was rushed to the hospital but was pronounced dead. Rossiter was appointed to the department in October 2021 and worked midnight shifts, according to police sources.
He was discovered by his father, a retired NYPD sergeant.
Investigators were told by the officer’s father that his son appeared to be fine before he entered his bedroom, but then heard a gunshot and discovered his son was severely injured.
The deceased officer worked in the 60th Precinct, which encompasses Coney Island, Brighton Beach, West Brighton Beach, and Sea Gate, according to sources.
When reporters visited his Staten Island home on Thursday, no one answered the door. According to a neighbor who is also an NYPD officer living on the same block, the officer who died was well-known and beloved in the area, which is populated by a significant number of cops and firefighters.
Another neighbor described the deceased officer’s family as wonderful.
On Thursday, Colin Rossiter’s college fraternity, Kappa Sigma Rho-Sigma, posted a tribute to him on Facebook, expressing their condolences and referring to him as a brother and friend who will always have a place in their hearts.
Despite having only served on the police force for just over a year, Rossiter was among the officers who were involved in the shooting of domestic violence suspect Jermaine Hickson in Coney Island in November 2022.
Hickson had reportedly fired several shots at the officers before he was shot dead, as captured in a video footage that was described as alarming. Sources indicated that the incident is currently under investigation by the NYPD’s Internal Affairs Bureau, but there has been no indication of any wrongdoing on the part of the officers.
On Thursday, Mayor Eric Adams, a former cop, expressed sympathy for the officers involved and reached out to them, acknowledging the potential impact of such a traumatic event on law enforcement personnel.
The tragic loss of Colin Rossiter to suicide has left many feeling heartbroken, including Mayor Eric Adams who spoke of the young officer’s age, noting that he and others like him are still practically children at only 21 or 22 years old.
Adams had previously communicated with Rossiter and other young officers, offering words of encouragement and support as they work to protect the citizens of New York City. The news of Rossiter’s death has been particularly difficult, as it marks the third time this year that an NYPD officer has taken their own life.
