A New York City man claiming to be infected with the coronavirus and to have underlying health issues pulled a weapon on police Wednesday morning in an attempt at “suicide by cop,” police said.
The 55-year-old man called 911 Tuesday morning and said he had tested positive a day earlier and wanted to be shot, the New York Police Department said.
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When police encountered the man in his Bronx neighborhood, he had a knife and what was later determined to be a black powder pistol, according to police.
Officers fired at the man nine times, hitting him in the hip and back, after he allegedly advanced on them with the gun and defied orders to drop his weapon and stop moving.
The man survived the shooting, according to NBC New York.
Police spoke to the man about his motive and he said that he was just diagnosed with COVID-19 last night, Chief of Department Terence Monahan told NBC New York.
Monahan said the man is overweight, has diabetes and thought he was going to die. It is unclear if he actually has been infected with coronavirus or has been diagnosed with COVID-19, the disease caused by the virus.
“He wanted the cops to shoot and kill him,” Monahan said.
