Belleville Police Shot Knife-Wielding Man 24 Times, Prosecutor Says

A man who appeared intoxicated and lunged at officers with knives was shot 24 times in about 10 seconds during a fatal confrontation with Belleville Police early Tuesday morning, the Essex County Prosecutor's Office said.

Acting Essex County Prosecutor Carolyn Murray said Wednesday three Belleville Police officers who responded to Dante Cespedes' Lake Street home on a domestic violence complaint fired a total of 30 rounds, striking the 40-year-old man 24 times in the head and torso when he lunged at them with "at least two knives," NJ.com reported.

Cespedes, a New York chef and father of two young children, was killed nearly instantly and was pronounced dead at 2:01 a.m. Tuesday.

Similar to other Essex County departments, Belleville officers do not carry non-lethal weapons like Tasors or stun guns, NJ.com reported.

Cespedes' wife, Judy Breton, 33, went to the Belleville Police Station early Tuesday morning to seek a restraining order because her husband was abusing her, the prosecutor's office said.

However, Breton, who has two children with Cespedes and two other children from a previous relationship, did not understand why lethal force was necessary, NJ.com reported.

Cespedes had been arrested three times in the past two years for two domestic incidents and an aggravated assault on a police officer charge, according to NorthJersey.com.