An off-duty NYPD detective exchanged gunfire with a suspect on the street in Queens early Tuesday after stopping his car to question the man because he looked suspicious, cops and police sources said.
The officer was driving home from work when he spotted the man, who he believed had a gun, at 232nd Street and Lansing Avenue in Brookville around 2:15 a.m., authorities and sources said.
The detective stopped his car and got out and approached the man, who then fired at him, according to cops and the sources.
The detective returned fire, according to police.
No one was struck in the exchange.
The suspect then fled, but he left his gun behind, cops said.
He was last seen wearing a gray sweatshirt and black ski mask, the sources said.
