As Nassau police close in, wanted man takes own life, cops say

Nassau County police were investigating a man’s suicide at his Oceanside apartment Saturday evening as a SWAT team was serving a warrant.

Officers were serving a bench warrant for a Long Beach drug offense, police said. The unidentified man, 30, was also wanted on a parole violation for a violent felony.

Police swarmed an attached apartment at the home at 3515 Oceanside Rd. at about 2 p.m. and saw the tenant holding a gun. The man ran to another room where he was found dead from a self-inflicted gunshot wound, detectives said.

Police said officers did not fire their weapons during the incident. Further details about the warrants were not immediately available.

“It’s a little shocking,” said Avi Wald, whose family lives nearby. “We picked this house because it’s a nice quiet neighborhood.”

He said the man wanted by police had rented the apartment for about a year and didn’t act suspiciously.

“He seemed to me like a nice guy. Now he’s dead,” Wald said.

By John Asbury

john.asbury@newsday.comJohnAsbury

John Asbury is a breaking news and general assignment reporter. He has been with Newsday since 2014 and previously worked at The Press-Enterprise in Riverside, California.