NCIS: New York's latest episode opens with two guards in an armored truck. As they make their rounds, they joke about what it would be like to steal the money they protect. One of them jokingly suggests fleeing to Mexico to avoid the authorities.
Eventually, they arrive at their next stop: a Naval Corps Credit Union. One guard gets out to collect the money, while the other waits in the car. When he comes back, the guard with the money is held at gunpoint by a masked man. The guard reaches for his gun, and the masked man shoots and kills him. The guard in the car hears the gunshot and moves to drive off but is shot through the windshield by a sniper.
Meanwhile, Sam's date from last week, Cassie, shows him an expensive-looking condo in the city. Sam likes the place but makes it clear that he can't afford it. Cassie then tells him the condo belongs to her client, and he's agreed to let Sam stay for a couple of months while he's away. Sam is suspicious, but Cassie assures him that her client has good intentions.
Back at the office, Wyatt and Addy discuss their "deal" from last week. But Nick interrupts them. He thinks they are talking about him behind his back. They assure him they aren't and make up an unconvincing lie that they were talking about Sam's alpha energy instead. Nick isn't convinced, but it doesn't matter, because Sam comes in and announces they have a new case.
The team tracks a sniper
Robyn tells the team that the recent armoured car heist is the third in the last two years. Robberies normally wouldn't fall under NCIS' purview, but this time the robbers stole from the Navy. Thankfully, they have a lead. When the masked man shot one of the guards, he removed his glove to check his pulse. But he never put the glove back on, so the NYPD collected DNA.
The man's name is Freddy Smith. He did three tours in the army and came home addicted to substances. Robyn sends Wyatt and Addy to the VA rehab where Smith went for treatment, while Sam and Nick check out the crime scene.
There, Nick says that he's seen a case like this before. The only difference was that the sniper couldn't pierce the windshield of the truck with his gun. Sam points out that the sniper from their current case used armor-piercing bullets and shot twice in one place. Once to pierce the windshield, and the second time for the kill shot. They then trace the angle to a condo overlooking the credit union. They find two shell casings on the balcony that match the shooter's weapon.
Afterwards, Addy calls Sam with an update on Freddy's location. He and Nick arrive only to discover Freddy's dead body. It appears he died from an overdose, but Nick thinks there is more to it. While the lab analyzes the needle, Sam and Nick visit a local politician named Wesley Jackson. Apparently, Freddy had previously been paid to hand out flyers for him.
Meanwhile, Wyatt and Addy find that Freddy doesn't match the height or weight of the men from the previous heists. Their theory is that the sniper may be using men like Freddy for the robberies, and then discarding them afterwards. Sean interrupts to say there may be an inside man in the dispatch center.
Sam gets a homecoming fit for a hero
Sam and Nick return to Sam's old neighborhood to locate Wesley Jackson. Nick asks him how it feels to be back home, and Sam says it feels strange. Everything is the same, but he's also grown a lot since he was last there.
However, the duo has to finish their walk down memory lane to focus on the case. When they walk into Wesley Jackson's office, they see the politician arguing with another man Sam recognizes. His name is Curtis. He and Sam knew each other years ago. Unfortunately, Wesley comes back, and he and Curtis start arguing again, so Sam and Nick have to separate them.
While Nick questions Wesley, Sam and Curtis have coffee and catch up. Curtis tells Sam how he started his career flipping houses in the neighborhood. Eventually, his business grew, and he expanded into housing development. But not everything is lollipops and gummy bears. Curtis notes that he often deals with crooked councilmen, including Wesley Jackson.
Sam tells Curtis about the case he and Nick are working on. Curtis says Wesley was most likely involved in the heist and that you have to keep an eye on him. He didn't know Freddy well, but he knew that he was struggling. As the conversation turns personal, Curtis says Sam is a success story. He made it out of the neighborhood and became a real-life hero. The two decide to continue their conversation over wings.
Meanwhile, Wesley takes issue with NCIS showing up at his campaign office. He thinks it will give him bad publicity, and Curtis will use it to tarnish his reputation. However, he does give Nick Freddy's employment file. In it, Nick finds a reference to someone named Tom Daniels.
Back at the restaurant, Sam and Curtis reminisce. When Sam was a kid, he almost joined a robbery crew. Thankfully, Curtis saved him from going to jail. He says he knew Sam was meant for better things.
While they reminisce, Wyatt and Addy visit the armoured car center for more information. Wyatt distracts the employee, while Addy sneaks to the back and gives Sean access to the mainframe. The receptionist nearly catches them, but they're able to get what they need and leave.
Curtis is brought to justice
Sean tells the team that someone installed a virus to access the armoured car schedule. Unfortunately, Sean can't see exactly who accessed it. But Wyatt has a theory. He thinks the sniper is doing their own gun reloads. As a result, they would need someplace to get tungsten to make the specialized bullets they carry. And only one shop in the area carries it.
Tom says Freddy was never the same after an IED explosion gave him a concussion. It's why he turned to substances. They offered him some relief from the demons that constantly hounded him. However, Tom denies letting Freddy list him as a reference on his employment application. He says he had nothing to do with Freddy going to work for Wesley and that the councilman himself recruited the man to work for him.
Back at the office, the analysis comes back for the needle used in Freddy's overdose. It was filled with pure fentanyl. Nick says no one is shooting themselves up with pure fentanyl. It's a death sentence. Unless someone Freddy trusted gave him the drug, Sam points out.
Meanwhile, Wyatt and Addy visit the gun shop to see if any of their customers recently purchased tungsten. However, the owner refuses to go out of his way to cooperate. He says he'll only say what the law requires. Thankfully, it isn't needed because Addy spots something interesting on the wall: a picture of councilman Wesley Jackson holding a rifle.
The team brings Wesley in for questioning, but he denies the allegations. Once Robyn comes in and butters him up, the councilman finally offers useful information. He tells the team that they should actually be looking at Curtis. He built his real estate empire on drug money and is now in debt to some pretty bad guys. Same doesn't want to believe it, but Nick tells him that Wesley's information checks out. Curtis' financials are a mess.
Just then, Sean comes in and tells the team that someone is accessing the armored pickup schedule as they speak. They are after a $2 million bounty scheduled for pickup that afternoon. To bring the sniper down once and for all, Sam sends Nick and Wyatt undercover as guards. Meanwhile, Sam will be on top of a roof nearby, with his rifle trained on the sniper.
Everything goes as planned, and Sam ends up shooting the sniper in the shoulder. He and Nick rush over to the apartment to apprehend the suspect and see Curtis bleeding out on the ground. He tells Sam that his aim is bad, but Sam says he hit exactly what he planned. He asks Curtis why he committed the crimes, and his old friend doesn't have a good answer.
Back at the office, Robyn checks in with Sam to see how he's doing. She even offers him some time off to process what just happened. But Sam says he has more work to do. He wants to help make sure others in his neighborhood don't fall through the cracks like Freddy. Robyn agrees to help.
NCIS: New York airs every Tuesday at 9/8c on CBS.
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