The New York Police Department has released body-camera and CCTV footage showing the moments that led to the fatal shooting of a Staten Island man.
Dmitriy Zass, 37, allegedly pointed a pellet gun at officers in Manhattan’s West Village on Jan. 8. The Great Kills resident died after Officers Geslline Gonzalez and Christopher Rodriguez fired 26 rounds at him near Bedford Street and 6th Avenue around 10:53 p.m.
The NYPD shared the footage on its YouTube page, and the 16-minute-long video is available to view below. Viewer discretion is advised.
The CCTV footage shows Zass pointing what appeared to be a firearm at the officers after exiting a BMW involved in a collision. There appears to be multiple other vehicles on the one-way street.
The body-camera video appears to show the two police officers responding to reports of the car crash. When they arrive at the scene, Gonzalez exits the police vehicle on the right side and confronts Zass.
Rodriguez, who was driving, appears to exit on the left and is behind Gonzalez when Zass points what appears to be a firearm at the officers.
After the initial shots, Gonzalez and Rodriguez take cover behind adjacent cars, and report the incident. Zass can be seen on the ground to the right of the BMW, still holding the apparent weapon.
According to the NYPD, the officers repeatedly ordered Zass to drop what turned out to be an imitation Sig Sauer air pistol; however, the released video includes a 60-second pre-event buffer without audio, so this initial moment is not captured by Gonzalez.
Emergency medical services transported Zass to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead at 11:17 p.m. Both officers were also taken to a hospital for evaluation.
Attorney General Letitia James’ Office of Special Investigation opened an investigation into Zass’s death, as required by law when police may have caused a person’s death. No charges have been filed, and the investigation is ongoing.