NYPD sergeant placed on modified duty for shooting raccoon on Rockaway Beach boardwalk, sources say

Thomas Tracy and John Annese, New York Daily News on Jan 26, 2026

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NEW YORK — An NYPD sergeant has been placed on modified duty after he shot to death what cops describe as an “aggressive” raccoon on the Rockaway Beach boardwalk, the Daily News has learned.

Bodycam video obtained by the Daily News shows three cops approached the animal as it moved near a fence from the beach toward the boardwalk near Beach 121st St. in Rockaway Park Thursday morning.

Sgt. Nicholas Henry fired a single shot, which hit the racoon, causing the critter to collapse. The officer whose bodycam recorded the shooting audibly sighed after the gunshot.

The animal struggled back to its feet and slowly walked along the beach behind the fence as the sergeant fired twice more.

NYPD personnel took the animal to an Animal Care Centers facility, “already deceased,” an NYC ACC spokeswoman said.

According to an NYPD statement, the cops were trying to guide the animal to a safe spot before it “suddenly charges towards a group of people in an aggressive manner.”

The bodycam footage does not show this group of people and police didn’t respond to follow-up questions about where they were located.

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—With Rocco Parascandola