On August 17, 1979, 36-year-old Police Officer Thomas Schimenti Jr. was killed while on duty in New York City. Walking his beat, he chased a bank robber wearing a gorilla mask who had been seen fleeing 100 Park Avenue. Two detectives joined the pursuit as the suspect ran north on Park Avenue toward Grand Central Terminal. The suspect turned and opened fire; Officer Schimenti was fatally wounded and one detective was injured. The suspect, 37-year-old Peter Donahue, was found wounded and hiding under a car a block away and was taken into custody.

Donahue escaped custody on March 3, 1980, when he and three other inmates broke out of Rikers Island; the other escapees were later recaptured and Donahue remained at large. Officer Schimenti was a 12-year veteran of the NYPD assigned to the Midtown South Precinct and was survived by his wife and two children. A Staten Island street corner was renamed in his honor on August 17, 1988.

Did anyone in the area at the time witness the chase or the shooting near Grand Central Terminal?