PEACEFUL CONCLUSION

Armed Man Outside UN Headquarters Wanted ‘Papers’ Delivered, Cops Say

Law enforcement officials said the man was taken into custody after an hours-long standoff.

A man with a shotgun who spent about three hours pacing outside the United Nations headquarters has surrendered to the NYPD and is in police custody. After a long standoff, he put down the firearm and threw up his hands around 1:45 p.m., according to footage. He left several notebooks on the sidewalk, which were collected by authorities.

“The individual is now in custody and there is NO THREAT to the public,” the NYPD tweeted. The man, while erratically walking back and forth, intermittently appeared to hold the gun to his own throat, chest, and head. He also appeared to be muttering to himself. A bomb squad arrived due to a backpack seen near the man. A lockdown has lifted for United Nations employees.

First Deputy Commissioner Benjamin Tucker said the man had come to New York from Florida. “He had some papers he wanted to delivered to the UN,” Tucker said. Cops took the documents to the UN, according to Tucker, after which the man gave up. The papers included medical records, and did not appear to be terror-related. The suspect has been sent to a city hospital pending charges.