Barstool Sports founder Dave Portnoy has raised "about $240,000" for the family of fallen New York Police Department officer Jonathan Diller and vowed to match additional contributions.
Diller, 31, was shot and killed after a routine traffic stop in Queens Monday night turned into a shootout with a suspect. Officer Diller left behind a young widow, Stephanie, and a one year-old son. In the video, Portnoy said Barstool Sports was selling NYPD merchandise on its store page and that he and the company had raised additional donations that would go toward supporting the family.
"OK, I'm sure everybody has seen the story," Portnoy said in a video posted to his X and TikTok accounts. "Tragic. The New York City cop, Jonathan Diller, who was murdered. Routine traffic stop, pulled over two guys, a million priors, been in and out of jail a million times and they just open fire on him, basically."
"Tragic. Leaves behind a one-year-old child, his wife. We put T-shirts on sale. We've raised about $240,000 directly for the family. Every penny that we make goes to the family," he continued. "On top of that whatever we sell, whatever we make at the end of day today, at midnight, I am just going to match it so double up on whatever we can make."
"I know money doesn't cure this," Portnoy added. "Nothing can cure this but it's the least we can do and Barstool, myself, we've got a long history supporting the cops, supporting the boys in blue, supporting first responders. You know, it's tragic. These guys go out, risk their lives. It's just awful so whatever we can do to support it, we will."
SUSPECTS IN SHOOTING DEATH OF NYPD OFFICER JONATHAN DILLER IDENTIFIED, HAVE LENGTHY RECORDS
Police arrested the suspect in the fatal police shooting, 34-year-old Guy Rivera. He has over 20 prior arrests, primarily for drug and violent offenses.
During a news conference, New York City Mayor Eric Adams said Diller and his partner conducted a traffic stop in Far Rockaway, Queens, at about 5:45 p.m. on Monday, after they found a vehicle illegally parked at a bus stop.
NYPD OFFICER SHOT, KILLED DURING CAR STOP IN QUEENS BY SUSPECT WITH MULTIPLE PRIOR ARRESTS: POLICE
When they approached the vehicle, they found Rivera in the passenger seat and asked him to step out of the car. He refused and allegedly opened fire on the officers.
The bullet missed Diller’s bullet-resistant vest, striking him in the torso. The officers returned fire and Rivera was struck. He remains hospitalized.
The driver of the vehicle, 41-year-old Lindy Jones, who also had a lengthy criminal record was also arrested.
