A Queens Family's Desperate Call for Help Was Misinterpreted as a Police Request
The family of Jabez Chakraborty, 22, who was shot by NYPD officers in his Briarwood home on Monday, has come forward with a shocking account of the events leading up to the shooting. According to Simran Thind, Desis Rising Up and Moving, a South Asian immigrant advocacy group, the family specifically asked for medical transport when they called 911, not police.
Chakraborty was shot at least four times after advancing on officers with a kitchen knife, the NYPD claims. However, the family maintains that their son was simply in need of hospital care, as he remained on a ventilator and had undergone multiple surgeries since the shooting.
The confusion began when the 911 dispatcher reportedly asked if the family wanted an involuntary removal response, which would trigger both EMS and police involvement. Thind disputes this account, saying the family's request for medical help was clear: "They said that he was not a threat, he just needs to go to the hospital."
The NYPD denies asking immigration-related questions of the family, but Thind asserts that officers did seize their phones and asked about their country of origin, when they last visited, and whether their daughter was born in the United States. The family finds these inquiries "irrelevant" to the situation at hand.
This incident has sent shockwaves through the community, particularly given its similarity to a similar case involving Win Rozario, 19, who was killed by NYPD officers responding to a mental health call in March 2024. The family of Win Rozario had also called 911 seeking help during a mental health crisis, only to be met with deadly force.
The state attorney general's office declined to prosecute the officers involved in Rozario's death, but the Civilian Complaint Review Board has recommended misconduct charges, paving the way for a potential departmental trial. For Jabez Chakraborty's family, the outcome is uncertain, but one thing is clear: their son will continue to fight for his life on a ventilator, with multiple surgeries behind him.
The family of Jabez Chakraborty, 22, who was shot by NYPD officers in his Briarwood home on Monday, has come forward with a shocking account of the events leading up to the shooting. According to Simran Thind, Desis Rising Up and Moving, a South Asian immigrant advocacy group, the family specifically asked for medical transport when they called 911, not police.
Chakraborty was shot at least four times after advancing on officers with a kitchen knife, the NYPD claims. However, the family maintains that their son was simply in need of hospital care, as he remained on a ventilator and had undergone multiple surgeries since the shooting.
The confusion began when the 911 dispatcher reportedly asked if the family wanted an involuntary removal response, which would trigger both EMS and police involvement. Thind disputes this account, saying the family's request for medical help was clear: "They said that he was not a threat, he just needs to go to the hospital."
The NYPD denies asking immigration-related questions of the family, but Thind asserts that officers did seize their phones and asked about their country of origin, when they last visited, and whether their daughter was born in the United States. The family finds these inquiries "irrelevant" to the situation at hand.
This incident has sent shockwaves through the community, particularly given its similarity to a similar case involving Win Rozario, 19, who was killed by NYPD officers responding to a mental health call in March 2024. The family of Win Rozario had also called 911 seeking help during a mental health crisis, only to be met with deadly force.
The state attorney general's office declined to prosecute the officers involved in Rozario's death, but the Civilian Complaint Review Board has recommended misconduct charges, paving the way for a potential departmental trial. For Jabez Chakraborty's family, the outcome is uncertain, but one thing is clear: their son will continue to fight for his life on a ventilator, with multiple surgeries behind him.