Suspect killed in Brooklyn police shooting charged at officers with knife and refused to stop: NYPD

A knife-wielding man killed in a Brooklyn police shooting on Monday morning allegedly charged at officers after repeatedly refusing to drop his weapon, law enforcement sources said.

According to Assistant Chief Michael Kemper, commanding officer of Patrol Borough Brooklyn South, police wound up opening fire on the now-deceased suspect after making numerous attempts to stop him through non-lethal force — including deploying Tasers, which had no effect on the man.

Police said the trouble began at about 4:10 a.m. on Dec. 20, when uniformed officers from the 71st Precinct responded to reports of a man armed with a knife and a gun in the area of 1090 Eastern Pkwy. in Crown Heights.

Upon arriving at the scene, Kemper said, the officers spotted the male suspect, not identified, carrying a knife in one hand, with his other hand concealed in a coat pocket.

“Officers gave numerous verbal commands for the male to drop the knife and show them his hands,” Kemper told reporters during a press conference at the 71st Precinct headquarters Monday. “The male ignored the officers’ directives and walked eastbound on Eastern Parkway, then went into the Utica Avenue train station.”

The chief said the officers followed the man into the subway station and continued pressing the man to drop the knife. They then deployed their Tasers, hoping to incapacitate the suspect long enough to disarm him and take him into custody — but Kemper said that, for whatever reason, the electrical devices had no effect on the man.

“That’s something we’re going to have to learn the answer to, [as to] why they were ineffective,” Kemper said.

Police canvass the Eastern Parkway location following a police shooting on Dec. 20, 2021.Photo by Lloyd Mitchell

After the failed Taser deployment, the chief noted, the suspect exited the Utica Avenue station and walked back onto Eastern Parkway, where two officers were waiting for him. Again, Kemper said, they demanded that the suspect drop his weapon and show his hands — but the suspect refused to comply.

“And it was at this point that he ran, literally ran, at one of the officers with a knife in his hand,” Kemper explained, describing bodycam footage of the incident that he viewed before the press conference. “And it was at that point where again, you hear the officers screaming to drop the knife, and the shots were fired.”

Assistant Chief Michael Kemper addresses the media.Photo by Lloyd Mitchell

The two officers fired 10 shots in all, based on the preliminary investigation. The suspect was hit multiple times in the torso, and the officers immediately rendered aid to him while awaiting paramedics.

EMS rushed the suspect to Kings County Hospital, where he died a short time later. Police have yet to determine his identity.

Kemper said officers recovered the suspect’s knife, which had a three-inch blade. No gun was found in his possession.

Deputy Chief Joe Gulotta holds up a picture of the knife the suspect allegedly carried.Photo by Lloyd Mitchell

The officers involved in the shooting were brought to a local hospital for evaluation, and were not injured, Kemper noted.

The case was presented to the NYPD Force Investigation Division, which handles police shootings, for further examination.

Watch as NYPD executives provide an update on this mornings police involved shooting in Brooklyn. https://t.co/qQLkNLQGIS

— NYPD NEWS (@NYPDnews) December 20, 2021