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Police Shoot Suspected Bank Robber In Midtown

NEW YORK (AP) - A police officer has shot a bank-robbery suspect near one of the busiest spots in Manhattan.

Police officers gather outside a Chase bank, Thursday, Oct. 14, 2010, in New York.

Police say the man was wielding a knife and was shot by an officer after robbing a Chase bank branch located right next to entrances to Madison Square Garden and Pennsylvania Station.

The shooting happened away from the hubbub of the area, down the block in a less-heavily trafficked area in front of an Amtrak loading dock.

New York Police Department spokesman Paul Browne says the suspected robber was shot once in the leg by a uniformed officer who just happened to be in the area.

Manhattanite Ethan Harp says he saw the whole thing. The freelance journalist says, "the officer seemed very calm."

Police say the man, in his 60s, was taken to the hospital, where he was conscious and speaking to doctors. Authorities have blocked off a portion of West 31st Street right near the bank, which is temporarily shuttered.

(Copyright 2010 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)

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