NYPD: Police Accidentally Killed Unarmed Hispanic Man

A police officer stands in a row of police cars parked in Times Square in New York, Wednesday, Sept. 17, 2014. Police stepped up security in Times Square on Wednesday amid concerns that the mounting hostilities betwe... A police officer stands in a row of police cars parked in Times Square in New York, Wednesday, Sept. 17, 2014. Police stepped up security in Times Square on Wednesday amid concerns that the mounting hostilities between the United States and the Islamic State group could have repercussions on U.S. soil. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig) MORE LESS
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NEW YORK (AP) — The medical examiner says an unarmed man who intervened in a confrontation between police and a knife-wielding assailant died of a gunshot to the back after police fired shots.

NYPD spokesman Stephen Davis says Rafael Laureano was “inadvertently” struck by a police bullet on Monday in Brooklyn. The assailant, Francisco Carvajal, also died in the shooting.

Police say Laureano had gone to the apartment after Carvajal’s former girlfriend called him for help. They say he rushed past officers to confront Carvajal.

Police say officers told Carvajal to drop the knife several times.

Police initially had said that Laureano was stabbed before officers arrived. The medical examiner said no stab wounds were found on his body.

The woman and her two young children were not harmed.

Copyright 2014 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

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