Knife-Wielding Man Shot Dead in Confrontation With Police

A Lake Street resident who was intoxicated and lunged at officers with knives was shot and killed by Belleville Police Tuesday morning, the Essex County Prosecutor's Office said.

Four police officers went to the couple’s Lake Street home to arrest the husband, Dante Cespedes, 40, for assaulting his wife and to serve him with a temporary restraining order issued by Judge Karen Smith of Belleville Municipal Court, the prosecutor's office said.

The Star-Ledger reported that Cespedes had worked as a relief chef at the Algonquin Hotel in Manhattan. 

Cespedes, who police said appeared intoxicated, lunged at the officers with two knives, the prosecutor's office said. Three of the four officers fired their weapons, the prosecutor's office said. Cespedes was pronounced dead at the scene at 2:01 a.m. Tuesday.

The Essex County Prosecutor’s Office Homicide/Major Crimes Task Force and the Professional Standards Bureau of the Prosecutor’s Office are investigating the shooting.