East Harlem police shooting: knife-wielding man hit in buttocks after attempted attack

East Harlem police officers shot and killed a knife-wielding man who allegedly tried to attack a group of people and police officers just steps from a local police station, New York police officials said Saturday evening. York.

Charges are pending against the suspect, a 36-year-old man who remains hospitalized in stable condition after a sergeant shot him in the buttocks to dispel the threat, according to Deputy Chief Ruel Stevenson, patrol commander of the borough of Manhattan North.

During a press conference on June 1 in front of the 23rd district, Stevenson said the suspect had a documented history of mental illness, including two prior encounters with New York police in May. In those cases, the chief noted, he was hospitalized for evaluation and then released.

Stevenson described preliminary details of the incident, which began around 5:30 p.m. on June 1, when a local resident came to the 23rd Precinct police station, located at 164 East 102nd St., and informed officers of the presence of an armed “angry man”. with a knife who was “trying to stab a group of people”.

Nearby security cameras and officers' body camera footage later confirmed that initial report, the chief noted.

A uniformed sergeant and two police officers came out of the police station to investigate the matter. Seconds later, after crossing the street, the three officers spotted the suspect brandishing a knife, running and attempting to stab a victim.

“The situation was extremely chaotic and fast-paced,” Stevenson said. “The officers gave numerous verbal commands to the man to drop the knife,” but the man refused and continued to pursue the individual.

The chief said the suspect lunged at two officers with the knife. One of the officers then fired a Taser, which Stevenson said had no effect on the man wielding the knife – who then swung the blade at the officer, missing his face by “only a few inches” .

“The sergeant, seeing that the man was trying to hit the officer, had no choice but to discharge his firearm,” the chief explained. The sergeant fired a shot which hit the man armed with a knife in the buttocks.

Police were able to subdue the suspect, who was then taken to a local hospital for treatment, Stevenson noted. The police officers involved in the incident were medically examined; no other injuries were reported.

“This police department is the smallest police department in the country and we use force as a last resort,” the chief said. “Unfortunately today, all our attempts to defuse this rapid incident, which lasted 34 seconds, were unsuccessful.”

The case was presented to the NYPD's Police Investigation Division, which reviews all incidents involving police use of force.