NYPD Officers Face Down Knife-Wielding Attacker in Manhattan Stairwell

Clear Facts

• NYPD officers fatally shot 54-year-old Wei Chan after he advanced toward them with a large butcher knife inside a Lower East Side apartment building Sunday afternoon
• Chan had attacked his 75-year-old father before police arrived, leaving him with a head laceration
• Officers responded to multiple 911 calls and followed a blood trail up a staircase before encountering the armed suspect

New York City police officers were forced to use lethal force Sunday afternoon when a man armed with a butcher knife ignored repeated commands and continued advancing toward them in a Lower East Side apartment building. The incident unfolded shortly after 4 p.m. at 126 Ludlow Street, where multiple 911 calls had reported an assault in progress.

When officers arrived at the scene, they discovered a trail of blood leading up the building’s staircase. As they followed the trail, they encountered 54-year-old Wei Chan descending the stairs while wielding what police described as a large butcher knife.

“Officers repeated multiple commands for the male to show his hands in an effort for him to drop the weapon,” NYPD Assistant Chief Melissa Eger said during a Sunday evening news conference.

“As officers issued repeated commands, the male continued to advance towards the officers armed with the large butcher knife.”

Faced with an immediate threat, the officers opened fire, striking Chan. He was transported to a local hospital, where he was later pronounced dead. According to Eger, Chan had no known criminal history with the department but did have a documented mental health history.

The situation officers encountered was more complex than initially reported. Investigators discovered that Wei Chan had assaulted his 75-year-old father, Cheung Chan, before police arrived, inflicting a laceration to the elderly man’s head. The father was transported to the hospital and is expected to survive his injuries.

The responding officers were also taken to a hospital for evaluation following the incident. Assistant Chief Eger praised their actions in the face of danger.

“Their actions are a reminder of how officers run towards danger and not away from it,” Eger stated.

Mayor Zohran Mamdani confirmed he had been briefed on the shooting and announced that the incident would undergo a full internal investigation, as is standard protocol for all police-involved shootings.

“As with every incident in which NYPD officers discharge their weapons, there will be an internal investigation, and body-worn camera footage of the incident will be released,” Mamdani wrote on X.

The circumstances surrounding the shooting remain under active investigation. The incident highlights the split-second decisions law enforcement officers must make when confronting armed suspects, particularly those with mental health challenges who pose an immediate threat to both officers and civilians.

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