Parking Attendant Charged After Disarming, Shooting Suspect Who Shot Him Twice

New York, NY – A 57-year-old night-shift parking garage attendant was charged with attempted murder for shooting a suspected thief who allegedly shot him two times inside a Manhattan parking garage early Saturday morning.

The incident began on the second floor of the West 31st Street garage at approximately 5:30 a.m. on April 1, the New York Post reported.

Moussa Diarra, the 57-year-old parking attendant, later told police he spotted a man peeking into vehicles and became concerned he was stealing, according to the news outlet.

Investigators said Diarra told them he confronted the suspect and escorted him outside of the garage, then asked him what he had hidden inside the bag he was carrying, the New York Post reported.

That’s when the suspect, later identified as 59-year-old Charles Rhodie, allegedly pulled a gun on him.

Diarra said the gun went off as he lunged for it, the New York Post reported.

He was hit in the stomach and grazed in the ear, but still managed to disarm Rhodie, according to police.

Diarra then fired the gun at his attacker, hitting him in his chest, the New York Post reported.

Both of the men were rushed to Bellevue Hospital, where they were subsequently listed in stable condition.

Both the parking garage attendant and his attacker were subsequently charged with attempted murder, criminal possession of a weapon, and assault, the New York Post reported.

Rhodie was also charged with burglary, according to WNYW.

He has at least 20 prior arrests, with his most recent being a 2018 petit larceny offense, the New York Post reported.

Diarra has no prior criminal history.

The charges against Diarra sparked outrage, with many people arguing he had acted in self-defense.

Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s office announced on Sunday night that further investigation is warranted, WNYW reported.

“We are declining to prosecute Moussa Diarra pending further investigation,” Bragg’s office said.

Charles Clayman, Diarra’s lawyer, said he and his client are “more than pleased with the result,” the New York Post reported.

“By this morning, people understood exactly what had happened, what a hero and victim my client was. Obviously not the perpetrator,” Clayman added. “So, all’s well that ends well.”