News / Society

NYC police officer kills knife-wielding man

Friday, 19 June 2015 12:55 PM [ Last Update: Friday, 19 June 2015 12:55 PM ]

Investigators look over the area after the police shooting in New York City near a Brooklyn subway station on Thursday.

An American police officer in New York City has fatally shot a man who allegedly pulled a knife on him.

The incident happened on Thursday afternoon near an elevated Brooklyn subway station when a 58-year-old man attacked the officer with a knife.

Police did not identify the victim but he is thought to be an African-American.

Police claimed that officer Filippo Gugliara, 24, was slashed at the base of his neck on his collarbone.

He was taken to Lutheran Medical Center where doctors said he only needed a few stitches.

At a press conference at Lutheran Medical Center, New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio and Police Commissioner William Bratton praised the officer’s actions.

"He faced quite clearly a life-threatening situation with this individual," Bratton said.

"Thank God this officer came out OK," De Blasio said.

Police brutality as well as the racial profiling of some minorities by law enforcement agencies has become a major concern in the United States.

The killing of several unarmed black men by white police officers in recent months and decisions by grand juries not to indict the officers triggered large-scale protests across the US.

There is also widespread racial disparity in the US criminal justice system. According to a study by the Sentencing Project research group, one in three black males are likely to be sentenced to prison sometime during their life. The figure for white men is one in 17.

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