New York Officers Attacked by Hammer-Wielding Man

The two police officers attacked by a man with a hammer in Manhattan on Wednesday have been discharged from hospital while the attacker is listed in stable condition, the New York City Police Department (NYPD) said in a statement on Wednesday.

NEW YORK (Sputnik) — According to the NYPD, the attacker assaulted the two police officers that approached him Wednesday morning after he fit the description of a male suspect wanted for four hammer assaults since Monday.

Witnesses say NYPD shot #DavidBaril multiple times & exclusively in the back, as they chased: http://t.co/wA7MLMYMqE pic.twitter.com/l67imVgFxm

— Keegan Stephan (@KeeganNYC) May 13, 2015

"Both officers have been treated and released," the NYPD statement read. "The suspect was taken into custody and transported by Emergency Medical Services to Bellevue Hospital in critical but stable condition."

#BREAKING NYPD officers fatally shoot hammer-wielding suspect in Midtown: http://t.co/J9YAiIrTc6 pic.twitter.com/Brhy9BORu9

— Heavy.com (@HeavySan) May 13, 2015

"The officers approached the suspect who then produced a hammer and swung it violently," the police said.

The suspect, identified by the NYPD as 30-year-old David Baril, was then shot two times and arrested.

Baril has eight prior arrests and a history of mental illness, according to the NYPD.