An off-duty New York City Police Department (NYPD) veteran reportedly died by suicide in his Long Island home, he was found at around 3:30 p.m. on Saturday.
The police officially confirmed the death of the officer on Sunday. Suffolk County Police homicide squad detectives announced they were investigating the death in West Bay Shore, where the body of the city police officer was found on Saturday.
The 52-year-old off-duty officer’s name was not publicly released, he was described as an 18-year NYPD veteran who was assigned to the city’s highway collision investigation squad. According to the officials, the veteran died from self-inflicted gunshot wounds. The Suffolk County Police Department is carrying out an investigation into the death, but they do not suspect any foul play.
The last NYPD death by suicide was in May, when Officer Sean Armstead turned the gun on himself after he fatally shot a young man he suspected was having an affair with his wife. The murder-suicide happened outside Buffalo Wild Wings on Route 211 in Wallkill, Orange County, New York. Officer Armstead, 36, took sick leave at work in the Bronx and reportedly tracked his wife, Alexandra Vandeheyden, and the man he believed was her lover, 20-year-old Edward Wilkins, to the La Quinta hotel on Route 211. The two left the hotel in separate cars, Armstead followed Wilkins’ vehicle — smashing into it at the Buffalo Wild Wings.
The young boyfriend reportedly got out of the damaged vehicle and ran, however Armstead chased him down and shot him in the head, then shot him again after he fell to the ground. Armstead then shot himself. According to New York Daily News, police found Armstead and Wilkins dead in the Buffalo Wild Wings parking lot. Meanwhile, the sources said his wife arrived at the scene in a separate car.
Gary DeYoung recalled what happened; he was walking his dog when he heard the crash. “Then one guy jumps out, comes over here and starts shooting away,” he said. “I was like, ‘Whoa.’ I called 911. By that time, there was two deceased on the ground here in the parking lot.”
Armstead lived in Port Jervis. He joined the NYPD in July 2011 and was assigned to a public housing command in the Bronx.
