What to Know
- Police on Long Island shot and killed a man who charged at them while wielding a samurai sword, a law enforcement source tells NBC New York
- Nassau County cops encountered a 36-year-old man fighting with his parents with access to multiple knives
- The man then picked up a samurai sword and refused to drop it, then charged at officers who opened fire
Police officers responding to a domestic disturbance call on Long Island shot and killed a man who charged at them while wielding a samurai sword, police said Tuesday.
Nassau County police say the officers received the call around 6 p.m. in Oceanside, when they encountered a 36-year-old man with multiple knives fighting with his father and sister on Columbus Avenue.
The distraught man then dropped the knives and picked up a samurai sword, police said, and refused to drop his weapon after multiple requests from officers. He then came toward the officers, getting within striking distance with the sword before cops opened fire, killing him.
The man's name has not been released, and cops were told by the family that he suffered from mental health issues. Neighbors said they knew the family involved as friendly and peaceful, but police said they have been called to the home before for previous domestic issues.
The parents were not hurt, and were said to be cooperating with investigators. Two of the responding officers were being treated at the hospital for trauma, but both are expected to recover, law enforcement sources tell News 4.
Although Nassau Police do not consider it linked to other violence in the area, the incident occurred at a home on Columbus Avenue — less than a mile away from the scene of a stabbing on Monday that left a 16-year-old dead. The fight broke out among a group of more than 60 high school students over a girl the victim had reportedly helped walk home from a party.
