Rexford Dasrath

Deadly force

NYPD were called when a man wielding a knife threatened to kill someone. When NYPD arrived, the man banged on the patrol car with the blade. Before they exit, he flings a bottle at a taxi. The cops got out of the car and split up to approach Dasrath, whom a source said weighed about 300 pounds. The cop fired at Dasrath from a distance of about five or six feet after he lunged at him with the knife. An NYPD press release said Dasrath was shot in the chest and one of his hands, but a cop source said he had five bullet wounds, though some may have been exit wounds. Dasrath, who was said to have had learning disabilities, was taken to Woodhull Hospital, where he died. The city successfully defended against a wrongful death lawsuit.