page_title: Randy Jurgensen
section_title: 1972 Harlem mosque incident
hierarchical_section_title: Randy Jurgensen / 1972 Harlem mosque incident
caption_attribution_description: English: Looking south at Malcolm Shabazz Mosque on West 116th Street in Harlem, New York City, US. Formerly was known as Mosque No.7.
context_page_description: Randy Jurgensen is a former NYPD detective, best known as the lead investigator into the murder of patrolman Phil Cardillo. Jurgenson was born in 1933 to Elizabeth and Randolf Jurgenson in Harlem, NY. He served in the U.S. Army as a paratrooper and was in the Battle of Pork Chop Hill in the Korean War. He was decorated with three bronze stars and a purple heart. He entered the NYPD in 1958 as a patrolman and was quickly promoted to detective. He worked undercover investigating members of the Black Liberation Army. At one point, the BLA placed a $50,000 bounty on his head, which is believed to still exist today. From 1973 to 1976, he led the Cardillo murder investigation. He was forced to retire from the NYPD, pleading nolo contendere to a series of charges brought up on by the NYPD. While still a detective for the NYPD, he began working on films as a consultant. He transitioned to a career in film acting and production and has appeared in more than 30 films.
context_section_description: On April 14, 1972, dispatchers received a 9-1-1 call from a "Detective Thomas", claiming to need assistance at the Nation of Islam's Mosque No. 7 on West 116th Street in Harlem. Five uniformed officers responded. What happened next is still in dispute. The police say they were overpowered and assaulted when they arrived; imam Louis Farrakhan and the other worshippers present say the police interrupted them with guns drawn during prayers, and refused repeated requests to wait or at least leave their guns, which their faith forbade to be carried into a place of worship, outside. At a press conference the next day, he would claim it was a premeditated attack and the 9-1-1 call just a ruse.
caption: Mosque No. 7 today, known as Malcolm Shabazz Mosque.
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