Police Subdue Armed Man on Main Street

North Reading police subdued an armed man who was trying to commit “suicide by cop” early Monday morning.

North Reading Police got a call at 5:45 a.m. Monday from a man in his early 30s who told the officer on the line that he was on foot and armed with a knife and wanted to die. The officer talked to the man until police units arrived at his location, a typically busy commercial section of Main Street near Kingston Street.

When police go to the scene, the talked to the man for 45 minutes from a distance of 10 to 15 yards, according to police.

During that time, the man showed knife, waved it around at the officers, and told the officers that he wanted them to shoot him.

The decision was made to request mutual aid from the Andover Police Department, whose officers carry a Taser.

A crowd eventually began to gather, and the man became animated, yelling at passers by that they should video record the situation because the police were about to shoot and kill him, police stated.

At that point, as morning traffic began to pick up and given the uncertainty of the situation with an agitated subject, officers decided to deploy the Taser.

The Taser immediately brought the subject down, and officers were able to disarm and detain him, according to police.

“Police officers this morning encountered a dangerous situation, with an armed subject, in public, trying to provoke a lethal response,” North Reading Police Chief Murphy said. “But the proper training, quick thinking, and patience exercised by the officers at the scene prevented the loss of life and prevented the subject, the officers, and members of the public from being harmed. The officers did an excellent job in the face of extremely difficult and stressful circumstances.”

He was evaluated by EMS staff before being taken to an area hospital for a psychiatric evaluation. He was not injured.

The individual’s name is not being released at this time.