A New York Police Department patrol car responding to an emergency call struck and killed a 24 year-old Japanese man in Queens shortly after midnight Feb. 21, the victim's family said.
According to a personal briefing from the police, Ryo Oyamada from Kagawa Prefecture was hit by a police cruiser that had its flashing lights and siren turned off, his father, Tsukasa Oyamada, 60, said Thursday.
He said he is planning to file a lawsuit in the United States over his son's death. "Police who are supposed to protect people have hurt someone," he said. "I don't think (the police) were willing to tell the truth."
Tsukasa Oyamada traveled to New York to meet with police, who told him the patrol car was responding to reports of a man carrying a knife and was not using its flashing lights and siren to avoid alerting the suspect.
The NYPD confirmed that a 24-year-old Japanese was killed by a police vehicle while crossing the street but declined to release his name as the investigation is ongoing.
Oyamada had been studying English since November at a Manhattan language school.