NEW YORK — A recent graduate of The Citadel was wounded by what appears to be a stray bullet in New York City's Times Square over the weekend, authorities said.
The 21-year-old victim, identified by The Citadel as Samuel Poulin, was shot in the back about 5:15 p.m. June 27, police said. He was taken to Bellevue Hospital in Manhattan for treatment of what were described as non-life-threatening injuries.
A family member plucked the bullet out of the victim's back and gave it to an officer, police said. No one else was hurt in the shooting.
Surveillance video of the shooting showed the gunman with a weapon in hand. Bystander video also showed the victim being taken away on a stretcher.
Officials with The Citadel said Poulin graduated in the college's class of 2021. He has been commissioned by the U.S. Marine Corps.
"We are encouraged that he is reported to be in stable condition (and) are sending our prayers and our love to his new wife and his family," according to a statement by Citadel President Gen. Glenn M. Walters.
Poulin graduated with a bachelor's degree in physics and was a President's List cadet, according to the statement. He and his family live in upstate New York, the New York Daily News reported.
Neither he nor his family could be reached by The Post and Courier.
The shooting took place near the site of a May 8 shooting that wounded two women and a 4-year-old girl. A man was later arrested in Florida following that shooting and charged with attempted murder.
Police said Sunday's shooting followed a dispute outside the Minskoff Theatre, where performances of "The Lion King" will start back in September after the coronavirus pandemic shut Broadway down. Published reports said the dispute may have involved street peddlers.
Hot dog vendor Salma Elkordy told the Daily News that bystanders bolted in terror after the shooting.
"I started to see people running. At first I didn't think anything of it," Elkordy said. "Shortly after, I saw the caution tape. They blocked off the area, and shortly after, the ambulance responded. I saw a big crowd of people and I knew somebody got shot."
Police have made no arrests.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
