The widow of NYPD Officer Didarul Islam, who died after being injured during the Park Avenue mass shooting in July, has given birth to the couple’s third child.
During a press conference on Monday, Aug. 18, Mayor Eric Adams confirmed that Islam’s wife, Jamila Akhter, welcomed a baby boy at Mount Sinai Hospital.
“On a happier note, we learned that Officer Islam’s wife gave birth to a young, beautiful baby boy,” Adams said. “I stopped by the hospital in the lobby yesterday to talk with family members. Mother was in labor. And we’re really excited that she gave birth to a beautiful young child.”
Islam and Akhter are also parents to two sons, Ahyan, 7, and Azhaan, 5.
Islam was one of at least four people killed when shots were fired at 345 Park Avenue in New York City, where Blackstone, the NFL and other companies are located. A fifth person remains in critical condition. The gunman, identified as 27-year-old Shane Devon Tamura of Las Vegas, died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound.
Islam, 36, was an immigrant from Bangladesh and a 3½-year veteran with the NYPD, Adams said during a previous briefing at Weill Cornell Medical Center in Manhattan.
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“He was doing what he does best … He was saving lives. He was protecting New Yorkers,” Adams said, describing the officer, who lived in the Bronx. “He loved this city. And everyone we spoke with stated he was a person of faith, and a person who believed in God and believed in living out the life of a godly person. He embodies what this city is all about. He’s a true-blue New Yorker.”
A friend of Islam’s told The New York Times that the officer had mentored other young Bangladeshi men. The outlet also reported he was “a pillar in his largely Bangladeshi neighborhood.”
Marjanul Karim, one of Islam’s close friends, explained to the Times that Islam had begun working as a school security guard before joining the NYPD.
“He wanted to support his family and be in a better position, and he fell in love with law enforcement while working security,” Karim said. “At the time, my mother told him, ‘You left a safe job working for a school in security, and being a cop is dangerous. Why did you do that?’ He told her he wanted to leave behind a legacy for his family, something they could be proud of.”
