More than $250,000 has been raised through two separate fundraisers to support the family of NYPD officer Didarul Islam, who was fatally shot during a mass shooting in Midtown Manhattan earlier this week. One fundraiser, set up on FundtheFirst.com for the 36-year-old father of two, had collected $195,561 by 8:30 pm on Wednesday. It aims to reach a goal of $500,000. “Didarul Islam was more than a police officer — he was a devoted father to two young boys, a beloved son, a caring husband, and a big brother not only to his sisters but to countless cousins, both here and in Bangladesh,” the organisers wrote. “We lost not just a brother, but a piece of our hearts.” A second campaign, created by Tom Grech of the Queens Chamber of Commerce on GoFundMe, had raised $56,641 by the same time. All proceeds will go to Islam’s family, New York Post reported. Islam’s wife is due to give birth to the couple’s third child next month. He was on duty providing security at 345 Park Ave at around 6:30 pm on Monday when Shane Tamura, a disgruntled Las Vegas security guard harbouring a grudge against the NFL, entered the skyscraper with an AR-15-style assault rifle. Tamura fatally shot Islam, fellow security guard Aland Etienne, and Blackstone executive Wesley LePatner in the building’s lobby before taking an elevator to the 33rd floor. There, he killed Julia Hyman, an associate at Rudin Management, who was laid to rest at a funeral on Wednesday, before turning the gun on himself. According to Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch, who was a friend of LePatner’s, Tamura blamed the NFL for a brain injury he claimed to have suffered while playing high school football. However, he ended up in the wrong elevator bank and never reached the NFL offices located in the building. “PO Didarul Islam was a hero from the moment he put on our uniform,” NYPD Police Benevolent Association President Patrick Hendry said this week. “When pure evil showed up on his post last night, he stood between that evil and innocent people,” Hendry added. “Police officers are mourning him as a friend and co-worker, but we ask all New Yorkers to honor him as the hero he was.”
