NYC's Top Cop: Copycats, .50 Calibers and M4s

New York Police Commissioner Ray Kelly warned Friday of possible copycat attacks in the wake of last week's massacre in Mumbai, India.

"In many ways, the city of Mumbai bears striking similarities to New York," Kelly told reporters.

"It is the country's financial capital, a densely populated cultural metropolis and a hub for the media ... all of these features make it a compelling target.

[It] reminds us that the threat of international Islamic extremism shows no signs of abating." -- Source

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60 Minutes Clip: .50 Caliber Sniper Rifle Demo With NYPD Commissioner Ray Kelly

Ed Bradley: "This would be a significant weapon in the hands of a terrorist?"

Kelly: "It would be a weapon that could do a lot of damage. No question about that."

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BTW, It's a really bad idea to fire a .50 caliber rifle at metal from close range:

.50 Caliber Ricochet - It Ain't Whistlin' Dixie

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Excerpt from: City Cops Prep for 'Mumbai'

[Dec. 8, 2008] By Larry Celona and Andy Geller for The New York Post

In the aftermath of the deadly Mumbai terror attacks, Police Commissioner Ray Kelly has come out with guns blazing - with a plan to get all 1,000 rookie cops ready to use heavy artillery in time for New Year's Eve, The Post has learned.

The NYPD wants all 1,000 Police Academy recruits trained to use M4 automatic machine guns - which are now carried only by the 400 cops in its elite Emergency Service Unit - in time for the holiday celebration in Times Square.

PHOTOS: NYPD Practices Fighting Terrorism In Brooklyn

The recruits currently at the academy will get three days of training to familiarize them with the weapon, police said.

The department also plans to train its 2,000 officers in the Organized Crime Control Bureau. They include narcotics, vice, gang- and auto-crime cops. That means five times as many cops will be able to use these powerful weapons as now.

"In the event of multiple terrorist attacks, these other units will be deployed to supplement Emergency Services," said NYPD spokesman Paul Browne.

Kelly had proposed training other cops in the use of the weapon, a compact version of the M16 combat assault rifle used by the military, during previous "tabletop exercises" that dealt with responding to multiple terrorist attacks, Browne said. The final decision to undertake the training was made after the three-day Mumbai, India, assault, which began Nov. 26.

There is no intelligence Times Square will be a target on New Year's Eve. The area will be on high alert, but has been so for every year since the millennium.