NYPD: Two bullets match gun used in fatal shooting of Officer Brian Moore; $17,500 reward offered

More than 30,000 police officers from across the country and Canada are expected to descend on Nassau County to attend the wake Thursday and the funeral Friday for slain NYPD Officer Brian Moore, officials said.

Moore, 25, a Plainedge High School graduate who lived with his parents in Massapequa, died Monday at Jamaica Hospital Medical Center.

Moore was shot in the head Saturday night in Queens Village by Demetrius Blackwell, 35, after the officer and his partner stopped to question him, police said.

NYPD and Nassau County police officials spent Wednesday planning street closures and other logistics for Moore's wake, to be held at Fredrick J. Chapey & Sons Funeral Home in Bethpage. A funeral is scheduled for Friday morning at St. James Roman Catholic Church in Seaford.

The Rev. John Derasmo, pastor of the Seaford church, released a statement yesterday expressing condolences to Moore's family and saying the fallen officer's contributions are not "measured by the length of time he served as a police officer but by the passion and concern he brought to his work with the NYPD."

Blackwell, 35, an ex-convict with a lengthy criminal record, is being held without bail, police said. He was arrested Saturday night.

Wednesday, Blackwell waived his right to a speedy grand jury presentation and is expected back in court May 27.

Queens District Attorney Richard A. Brown has said he would seek to charge Blackwell with first-degree murder, which carries a penalty of life in prison without the possibility of parole.

The NYPD announced a $17,500 reward late Wednesday afternoon for information leading to a conviction, said NYPD spokesman Stephen Davis, adding that investigators have collected DNA from the gun but have not linked it to anyone yet.

Earlier Wednesday, police said NYPD ballistics experts had matched two bullets recovered from the unmarked police vehicle driven by Moore when he was shot. On Monday, investigators recovered a .38-caliber revolver a short distance from the scene that they suspect was used in the shooting.

Fragments recovered from the round that hit Moore couldn't be matched because of the degraded state of the pieces, a law enforcement official said Wednesday.

The gun was recovered under a box in a backyard on 212th Place in Queens Village, and police are continuing to test it for DNA evidence and fingerprints in an effort to link it to Blackwell, officials have said.

The deadly Saturday encounter between Blackwell and Moore took place in about a minute, police said.

Moore was driving with his partner, Erik Jansen, when they saw Blackwell walking on the sidewalk of 212th Street.

Moore drove around the corner to 104th Road and pulled in by Blackwell, police said. Moore asked Blackwell if he had something. Blackwell responded "I got something for you," pulled a gun and fired three times, striking Moore once in the head, police said. Blackwell fled and was taken into custody later at his residence.

Days after the shooting, people continued to rally in support of Moore and his family, hanging blue ribbons from homes and businesses in Massapequa and surrounding communities.

A pair of NYPD officers who attended Plainedge High School gave blue "NYPD" caps to students on the baseball teams at Plainedge Middle School Wednesday.

Officer John Petrucci, a 24-year-veteran, and Lt. Vinny Foppiano, a 22-year-veteran, said they wanted to help bring the community together. The students planned to wear the caps for a game Wednesday afternoon.

"The kids -- a lot of their parents on this team, their fathers are cops, their mothers are cops," Petrucci said. "This town is filled with firemen, sanitation workers, teachers. . . . These kids know and respect cops and they know what Brian Moore did that night for everybody."

Funeral arrangements for Brian Moore

A funeral Mass for NYPD Officer Brian Moore of Massapequa is scheduled for 11 a.m., Friday at St. James Roman Catholic Church, 80 Hicksville Rd., Seaford.

Visiting is scheduled Thursday from 2 to 4:30 p.m. and from 7 to 9:30 p.m. at Frederick J. Chapey & Sons Funeral Home Inc., 20 Hicksville Rd., Bethpage. The Nassau Police Department said motorists in the Seaford area should prepare for multiple parking restrictions, road closures and delays throughout Thursday and Friday.

The following is a list of expected parking delays and road closures:

No parking from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. Thursday on Stewart Avenue and Hicksville Road, from Hempstead Turnpike to the Seaford Oyster Bay Expressway, and Friday, from 6 a.m. to 2 p.m., in addition to Union Avenue and Seamans Neck Road.

Stewart Avenue from Hempstead Turnpike to Boundary Avenue will be closed from noon to 10 p.m. Thursday.

Stewart Avenue and Hicksville Road from Hempstead Turnpike to the Seaford Oyster Bay Expressway, Union Avenue, and Seamans Neck Road from Hicksville Road to Cordwood Lane will be closed Friday from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.

By Anthony M. DeStefano

tony.destefano@newsday.com,nicole.fuller@newsday.comtonynewsday,

Anthony M. DeStefano has been a reporter for Newsday since 1986 and covers law enforcement, criminal justice and legal affairs from its New York City offices.