A 54-year-old man was shot and killed by New York City police Sunday afternoon after authorities say he attacked his elderly father with a butcher knife and then advanced toward responding officers inside a Lower East Side apartment building.
Police were called to a residence on Ludlow Street in Manhattan at around 4 p.m. after receiving a report of an assault in progress. When officers entered the building, they found a trail of blood leading up the staircase, according to the NYPD.
Assistant Chief Melissa Eger said the officers followed the blood upstairs without knowing exactly what they would encounter. As they moved through the building, they were confronted by Wei Chan, 54, who was holding a large butcher knife.
Police said officers repeatedly ordered Chan to drop the weapon, but he did not comply. Instead, authorities say he continued moving toward them with the knife in his hand. The officers then opened fire, striking him.
Emergency medical workers treated Chan at the scene and performed CPR before transporting him to Bellevue Hospital. He was later pronounced dead.
Inside the building, officers also found Chan’s 75-year-old father, Chung Chan, suffering from a serious cut to his head. Investigators determined that he had allegedly been struck with the butcher knife by his son before police arrived. He was also taken to Bellevue Hospital, where authorities said he was in stable condition and expected to survive.
The violence drew the attention of people in the surrounding neighborhood, including a Brazilian couple who were visiting New York on their honeymoon. Fabio Gutierrez and his wife, Debora Martins, were eating at a nearby restaurant when the police and emergency response unfolded.
Gutierrez said he initially believed the commotion was connected to a fight in the neighborhood. Martins later saw emergency workers treating Chan on a stretcher and described the scene as deeply disturbing. She also recalled seeing another injured man covered in blood being escorted from the area.
According to sources cited in the original report, Chung Chan had not yet been told that his son had died in the police shooting.
Police said Wei Chan did not have a prior criminal history with the NYPD, although authorities said he had a documented history involving mental health issues. No police officers were injured during the confrontation, and investigators recovered the butcher knife from the scene.
The incident is now subject to the standard review that follows a police shooting in New York City. Mayor Zohran Mamdani said he had been briefed on what happened and expressed hope that the injured father would make a full recovery.
Mamdani also said the NYPD would conduct an internal investigation into the officers’ use of deadly force. Body-worn camera footage from the officers involved is also expected to be released as part of the department’s review process.
