A middle-aged man fired three bullets at the entrance of the Metropolitan Police Department's headquarters Friday morning, shouted praise for the Emperor and then fatally shot himself in the head, MPD officials said.

"Please work hard for the Emperor," the man was quoted as saying before firing the fatal shot with a 38-caliber revolver. Such comments are characteristic of ultra-nationalists.

Officials suspect the man planned the bizarre attack and suicide Friday to coincide with the 52nd anniversary of the Japanese surrender in World War II.

The man, described as being between 40 and 60 years old, fired the shots at 10:40 a.m., fell to the pavement at the entrance and died at the scene, the officials said.

As the shots rang out, a number of investigators rushed out of the building.

The man had short-cropped hair and wore a cap with a camouflage pattern. He also wore a red jersey and blue jeans, the officials said. Glass sections of the entrance area had been damaged by gunfire.