Man shoots girlfriend dead on Manhattan street, then commits suicide in front of shocked onlookers

A man confronted his girlfriend on a Lower Manhattan street Monday morning and shot her dead before turning the gun on himself, police said.

Bursts of gunfire sent passersby running for cover just before 9:20 a.m. at Morris St. and Trinity Place in the Financial District, where violence is rare.

The 46-year-old shooter, believed to be from Canada, was wearing a hat when he confronted the 40-year-old woman and shot her twice in the head before shooting himself in the chest. She died at the scene, police said.
 

A witness walking to the subway station with her headphones on didn’t hear the shots. When construction workers got her attention she realized what had happened and called 911.

The mortally wounded shooter still had the gun in his hand, according to the woman, who declined to give her name. A man passing by didn’t want to get involved so she stepped in, she said.

“I took the gun from his hand while he was still breathing,” the woman said. "I just did it just to be safe. I took it really quick and put it on the ground next to my foot.”
 

Her quick-thinking meant she had to have her fingerprints taken by cops so she could be eliminated as a suspect.
 

“I just did what needed to be done to make sure no one else got hurt," she said. “I really didn’t think about it.”

Medics rushed the shooter to Lower Manhattan Hospital, where he died.

The names of the shooter and victim were not immediately released.