A 22-year-old man died in East Harlem on Saturday, May 2, after a prolonged wait for an ambulance ended with NYPD officers placing him in a patrol car and rushing him to the hospital themselves. The NYPD has opened a formal review because the death occurred while he was in police custody.
According to the New York Daily News, officers responded to East 116th Street near Lexington Avenue around 5:40 p.m. after a 911 caller reported that a man may have overdosed and appeared emotionally disturbed.
Police requested an ambulance at approximately 5:44 p.m. and called again at 6:05 p.m. when medics still had not arrived, the report states. By about 6:25 p.m., with no FDNY EMS crew on scene, officers decided they could not wait any longer. They placed the man in a patrol car and transported him to Harlem Hospital, arriving around 6:29 p.m. He was pronounced dead at 6:56 p.m.
Police sources said the entire encounter lasted close to 40 minutes before officers chose to transport him in the squad car.
The department automatically refers any death that occurs in NYPD custody to its Force Investigation Division, which is now handling this case. The NYPD’s public use-of-force guidelines state that FID investigates incidents where a person dies or suffers serious injury, using body-worn camera footage, supervisor reports, and other evidence.
The same guidance outlines how officials classify and review these cases, including internal procedures and how findings may be shared with other authorities.
Ambulance delays and a strained EMS system
This death in East Harlem comes amid growing concern over FDNY EMS staffing shortages and increasing ambulance response times across the city. A Columbia News Service investigation has highlighted chronic understaffing and rising response times in recent years, while EMS union leaders have warned during City Council testimony that response times for the most critical calls continue to climb.
Those findings, along with a November 2024 council hearing, add broader context to the mounting pressure on FDNY EMS in terms of staffing and available resources.
City reports note that the FDNY did not immediately respond to requests for comment regarding the East Harlem incident. Police sources told reporters that the man had no arrest record and no known history of drug use. Investigators have not yet released his name.
The NYPD says the Force Investigation Division review remains ongoing as officials collect statements and evidence. Depending on its findings, the case could be referred to other city oversight agencies or prosecutors, which is standard procedure in deaths that occur in custody. For now, authorities continue to limit public details as the investigation proceeds.
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