Police shoot disturbed man who was wielding machete, butcher’s knife in NYC

Police shot a disturbed man who was wielding a machete and butcher’s knife at his Brooklyn home Tuesday, according to police and law enforcement sources.

A lieutenant, who responded to the scene with other cops, approached the armed man at the Brownsville home around 4 p.m. after he was previously accused of assaulting a woman earlier in the afternoon in another part of Brooklyn, police said.

The suspect was sitting on the stoop of the home, but then grabbed a 20-inch machete and butcher’s knife and began to advance on the lieutenant, NYPD Chief of Patrol Jeffrey Maddrey said during a press conference.

The lieutenant repeatedly told the suspect to drop the weapons, but the armed suspect continued approaching until the lieutenant shot at him twice, Maddrey said. 

The suspect was struck in the groin-thigh area and went down, Maddrey said. He was off his medication at the time of the incident, sources said.

“The lieutenant was being advanced on and was moving very quick and the lieutenant had to protect himself and his officers,” Maddrey said.

The suspect was handcuffed and immediately given aid on the scene until he was taken to Brookdale Hospital where he is expected to survive, police and sources said.

The officers were also taken to an area hospital.

The suspect attacked a 58-year-old female therapist at 2:30 p.m. at Court Street Brooklyn, according to police and sources. He fled the scene following the assault.

Before that attack, the suspect also assaulted one of his own family members, Maddrey said. Neither attack included using a weapon, Maddrey said.

He is also accused of threatening one of his neighbors with the machete just before cops arrived at his Brownsville home, Maddrey said.

The suspect is on federal probation for a prior non-violent crime, Maddrey said, though he did have more information during the press conference.  

The age of the suspect was not released pending charges, cops said.