NEW YORK (TNND) — A man who told officers he wanted to die was shot and killed by the NYPD after he allegedly advanced toward police with a knife on the Brooklyn Bridge early Friday, officials said.
Police received a 911 call around 3:28 a.m. reporting a man walking on the bridge’s cables. After members of the Emergency Service Unit arrived, Commanding Officer Gerry Dowling said officers climbed onto the cables and spent nearly an hour trying to talk the man down.
Dowling said the officers had to be physically clipped to the bridge for safety, which “drastically impacts the speed of their movement.”
During the attempted rescue, officers saw the man holding a knife, Dowling said. The man told them: “I want to die. I want you to kill me. I have a bomb. You’re not going to make me do something bad to the cops.”
Officers repeatedly ordered him to drop the knife, Dowling said. After about an hour, the man quickly descended the cable toward officers, who moved backward.
When he got within about three feet of the nearest ESU officer and raised his arm with the knife, an officer fired, Dowling said.
Officers rendered aid, but the man was pronounced dead at Bellevue Hospital. His identity has not been released.
Dowling said body-camera footage captured the encounter. The NYPD Force Investigation Division is investigating.