The location where John Lennon was shot dead

This is the apartment building where John Lennon was shot dead.

It is called the Dakota, and it is situated at 1 West 72nd Street in Manhattan, New York.

On the night of December 8th, 1980, Lennon and his wife, Yoko Ono, were approaching the front entrance of the Dakota when a crazed fan named Mark Chapman pulled a revolver out of his coat jacket and opened fire on the Beetle's singer.

Lennon collapsed after being shot four times in the back.

Bizarrely, his assailant made no effort to flee the scene of the crime. Instead of running away, he stood on West 72nd Street and casually read J. D. Salinger's novel, The Catcher in the Rye.

When the police arrived, Chapman calmly apologized to the officers for "ruining their night."

Although the police rushed Lennon to a nearby hospital, the damage to the arteries around his heart was far too extensive.

As a result, efforts to resuscitate him failed, and he was pronounced dead 15 minutes after his arrival.

Roughly six hours before the shooting, Chapman had approached Lennon while he was leaving the apartment building and asked him for an autograph. The singer obliged, despite the fact that he was running late and his limousine was waiting for him.

After Lennon and Ono left, Chapman hung around the front entrance and patiently waited until they returned. When the couple arrived back at the Dakota, he stood and watched them as they walked past. Then, once they had their backs to him, he pulled out a gun and opened fire on Lennon from behind.

Initially, Chapman claimed that he murdered Lennon because he was a "phony" who had made controversial remarks about the Beatles being "more popular than Jesus." However, he later revealed that his true motive was to gain worldwide notoriety.

"It was just self-glory, period. It was nothing more than that. It boiled down to that. There's no excuses."

Chapman pleaded guilty to Lennon's murder in January 1981. Seven months later, a judge sentenced him to 20 years to life.

He remains in prison to this day.

Photos

Photos of the apartment building and other related images.

Apartment

The photograph at the top was taken shortly after Lennon's murder. When news broke about the shooting, hundreds of fans started gathering outside the apartment building.

The Google Street View image at the bottom is from October 2017.

Autograph

A photographer took a picture of the exact moment when Lennon stopped to give Chapman an autograph.

Chapman later admitted that the Beatles singer had been very kind and patient with him.

Despite this, he still decided to stick around and shoot him.

Chapman's most recent parole hearing was held in 2020. However, his parole was denied after he suggested that killing Lennon gave him "glory."

During his closing statement, he admitted that his actions were selfish and apologized to Yoko Ono for murdering her husband.

As of 2023, Chapman is incarcerated at the Green Haven Correctional Facility in Beekman, New York. He is currently 67 years old.

His next parole hearing is due to take place in February 2024.

1 West 72nd Street

This is an aerial image of the area around West 72nd Street and Central Park West.

Lennon was shot with a .38 special revolver. After being critically wounded, he stumbled through the gates of the Dakota and collapsed on the steps to his right.

Murder site

Following the murder, fans began leaving flowers at the entrance to the Dakota. The NYPD erected crowd barriers to prevent people from entering the property.