A 46-year-old man with an unknown medical condition died after being chased by cops, who tried to save him, in the Ridgewood area of Queens Wednesday afternoon, police said.
The man, who was not immediately identified, was sitting on a motorized scooter on Grandview Avenue just after 2 p.m. when an Anti-Crime sergeant and a police officer realized he had an open warrant against him.
It was not immediately clear what the warrant was for.
The man then started to ride away and the officers followed him, police said. He then rammed into the sideview mirror of an SUV near Bleecker Street and fell off the scooter.
The man tried to run, but police caught up with him. It was then that he told officers he couldn’t breathe and he had medication for a condition.
Police said the man, who was handcuffed, was given the medication and stood up. Just moments later, however, he collapsed.
The condition the man was suffering from was not immediately clear.
Police said they took the handcuffs off and the officer started doing chest compressions.
The man was taken to Wyckoff Heights Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead.
The Internal Affairs Bureau is investigating the incident, police said.
Another man, Eric Garner, died while in police custody in July in Staten Island after being placed in an alleged chokehold. He was being arrested for allegedly selling loose, untaxed cigarettes.
In August, Ronald Singleton died in police custody while under the influence of the hallucinogenic drug PCP.
