Police ID Victims In West Hempstead Stop & Shop Shooting

WEST HEMPSTEAD, NY — Nassau County police released more details about the shooting at a Stop & Shop in West Hempstead on Tuesday that claimed the life of a 49-year-old manager and left two others injured.

Police arrested 31-year-old Gabriel Dewitt Wilson Tuesday in connection with the shooting. He was arraigned Wednesday and charged with one count of second-degree murder and four counts of attempted murder. If convicted, the top charge carries a sentence of 25 years to life in prison.

The victim was identified as Ray Wishropp, 49, of Valley Stream. Police did not release the names of the others who were shot, but said one was a 50-year-old man from Bethpage who was shot three times: twice in the shoulder and one graze against his cheek. The other was a 26-year-old woman from Bay Shore who was shot in the shoulder.

Police said Wilson also fired at two 47-year-old women who were in the office, but did not hit them. Police say he fired seven shots with a semi-automatic .38-caliber handgun. Police have not yet recovered the weapon.

"I want to make sure the message is loud and clear: if you engage in this behavior in Nassau County, be prepared to face the full force of the law," said District Attorney Madeline Singas.

At a press conference Wednesday morning, Stephen Fitzpatrick, the commanding officer of the Nassau County Police Department's Homicide Squad, provided more details about the shooting. Fitzpatrick said that Wilson originally entered the store around 10:30 a.m. and discussed transferring to the Stop & Shop in Hempstead with his manager. Police said the meeting was "uneventful," and that Wilson left the store without any issue. He returned about 40 minutes later and began shooting.

Nassau County Police Commissioner Patrick Ryder said that Wilson had a criminal history, and was arrested numerous times in Baltimore, Maryland. He was previously arrested for assault and distributing narcotics, Ryder said. Wilson was involved in a shootout in April 2013, Ryder said, where he was shot in the head.

Ryder said that Wilson has no previous criminal history in New York, but he was the subject of two mental health aided cases, one in Roosevelt and one in Long Beach. Ryder did not have the details of the incidents.

Wilson moved to Long Island around 2017, police said, and began working at the Long Beach Stop & Shop. He was employed there for about two years before transferring to the West Hempstead store, where he worked as a parking lot attendant.

Fitzpatrick described Wilson as a "troubled employee." He said that a female employee made a complaint that Wilson was making unwanted advances on her. Fellow parking lot attendants also complained that he was aggressive and threatening to them in the past. When management discussed the incidents with him, though, Fitzpatrick said Wilson reacted calmly.

Police are still trying to piece together a motive for the shooting, which shook the community and added West Hempstead to the growing list of communities plagued by gun violence.

The horror began just after 11 a.m. Police said they received calls for shots fired at the Stop & Shop, located at 50 Cherry Valley Ave., at 11:19 a.m.

According to police, Wilson entered the store and immediately went to an office on the second floor, where he shot a man and a woman there with a handgun. He then went to a second office, where he shot and killed Wishropp, police said. Wilson then fled the scene, police said.

Ryder said that, after his identify was made public, police received numerous tips from the community, local politicians and clergy members who knew Wilson. Ryder credited the cooperation between law enforcement and the community in helping to apprehend Wilson so quickly.

According to Ryder, the Nassau County Police Department had assistance throughout the day from the Garden City, Hempstead and New York State police. At one point, there were more than 150 officers combing the area.

Wilson was eventually located at 100 Terrace Ave. in Hempstead. Fitzpatrick said the police received calls that he was in the building, and used surveillance video to confirm it. A SWAT unit was dispatched to the scene, and the building was surrounded by patrol officers from both the Nassau County and Hempstead Village police departments. Wilson tried to flee the building through the lobby, police said, but was arrested by officers as he tried to escape.