Multiple people, including four children, were injured Sunday morning after a 49-year-old relative allegedly attacked them with a meat cleaver, according to police.
Authorities said they received a 911 call from an 11-year-old girl around 10:15 a.m. from an apartment on 84th Street near 16th Avenue in the Bensonhurst section of Brooklyn.
During the call, the girl told authorities that her uncle had attacked her and her siblings, NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch said at a press conference following the incident.
Officers responded to the home and were led to the apartment by an uninjured male child, Tisch said. Inside the building, they could hear screaming coming from the apartment where the alleged attack was still actively occurring.
Once inside, officers "encountered a man standing near the entrance holding a large meat cleaver covered in blood. And they could see blood on the floor and the walls in the home,” Tisch said.
“Officers ordered the man to drop the weapon several times. He refused and advanced toward them. Two officers discharged their firearms, firing seven total rounds between them and striking the subject, ending the threat,” she added.
The victims, four girls aged 16, 13, 11 and 8, all suffered “serious slash and stab wounds,” according to Tisch. They were treated at the scene and later transported to Maimonides Medical Center. All are expected to survive, according to police officials.
The suspect, identified as Longqian Chen, was also transported to the hospital in critical condition. Charges had not been filed as of 11 a.m. Monday.
While the motive for the attack remains under investigation, authorities said Chen has a history of mental illness. However, no prior domestic violence incidents have been linked to the address.
Police said a kitchen knife and cleaver, both covered in blood, were recovered from the scene.