18-Year-Old Man Armed With Machete Fatally Shot By Police In Brooklyn
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- A man wielding a machete was fatally shot by police in Brooklyn on Tuesday.
The incident happened around 6:10 p.m. at Dumont Avenue and Strauss Street next to the Betsy Head Memorial Playground in Brownsville.
Police say they received multiple reports of a man with a machete who was terrorizing the neighborhood with a machete.
"Acting erratic, laying on the ground, damaging parked vehicles, attempting to enter one caller's front yard, and chasing people in the area with the machete," NYPD Chief of Patrol Juanita Holmes said.
WATCH as @NYPDChiefPatrol provides an update on the earlier police involved shooting in the confines of the @NYPD73pct. pic.twitter.com/HkTK054E7Y
— NYPD NEWS (@NYPDnews) December 30, 2020
Police say 18-year-old Samuel Lazaro slashed a woman walking her dog. The woman was taken to a local hospital with deep cuts in her head and both hands.
"I saw people coming out on stretchers, the lady with her dog. The dog was barking. This is crazy," neighbor Keisha Tull told CBS2's Ali Bauman.
"Her dog was also struck with the machete in the left shoulder. The dog was taken to an area clinic in stable condition," Holmes said.
When officers arrived, authorities say the suspect immediately ran towards them.
"Officers gave commands to drop the machete. The suspect did not comply, and one officer discharged a single round, striking the suspect in the chest," Holmes said.
Lazaro was rushed to a local hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
"This is a peaceful neighborhood. You got people with kids that play in the park every day. You got people that walk around the neighborhood with their kids. People that go back and forth from school to work. How could this keep happening like this?" Tull said.
Both the woman and the dog are being treated for their injuries and are expected to be OK.
Police are investigating what led up to the incident and whether or not the victim and suspect knew each other.
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Note: This post was updated with the suspect's identity Wednesday.