An NYPD lieutenant who fired a single shot at an armed man during a Brooklyn foot pursuit will not face prosecution, a decision that vindicates an officer who gave every command the textbook requires before pulling the trigger.
Lt. Richard Custodio fatally shot 28-year-old Royston Bacchus on Oct. 5 in the East Flatbush neighborhood of Brooklyn after Bacchus pointed a loaded firearm in the lieutenant's direction and told officers to shoot him. The New York Attorney General's Office of Special Investigation, the state body that probes every death caused by police in New York, reviewed body-camera footage, forensic and ballistics evidence, and officer interviews before concluding that prosecutors could not disprove beyond a reasonable doubt that Custodio was unjustified in firing, the New York Daily News reported.
Put plainly: the state's own investigators found no viable case against the officer. The AG's office released its report and closed the matter without charges.
Body-cam footage captured every command, and the moment Bacchus raised his weapon
The confrontation began around 9:06 a.m. when officers responded to a 911 call reporting harassment and a violation of a court order of protection. Near East 86th Street and Avenue B, officers spotted Bacchus, who matched the description of the suspect. A foot pursuit followed, covering roughly one and a half blocks through the residential neighborhood.
Six officers, Custodio and five others, chased Bacchus to the intersection of East 86th Street and Coventry Road. Body-camera footage shows Bacchus standing in the middle of the street, clutching a gun in his left hand. Officers surrounded him and shouted repeated commands to drop the weapon.
Custodio alone shouted "Drop it!" ten times. Other officers yelled "Drop the gun!" and "Don't be stupid! Drop the gun!" Bacchus did not comply. Instead, he backed toward the curb while still holding the firearm.
Then Bacchus said two words: "Shoot me." He raised the gun slightly and pointed it in Custodio's direction. Custodio fired once, striking Bacchus in the chest. Bacchus fell onto the curb.
Officers rushed to Bacchus immediately, restrained him with handcuffs, and began CPR. Medics transported him to Kings County Hospital in Brooklyn, where he died. Police recovered a loaded firearm at the scene and released a photograph of it later that day.
Letitia James's office found no grounds to prosecute
Attorney General Letitia James's Office of Special Investigation carries a broad mandate: it reviews every police-caused death in New York State. That office conducted the full investigation into Bacchus's death, interviewing the officers involved and examining forensic, ballistic, and video evidence.
The conclusion was unambiguous. Prosecutors determined they could not disprove beyond a reasonable doubt that Custodio's use of force was unjustified. That is a high bar, and the evidence cleared it decisively. An armed man pointed a loaded gun at a police officer after refusing ten separate commands to drop the weapon. The AG's office had no case, and it said so.
Cases in which officers are cleared after thorough investigation deserve the same public attention as cases in which misconduct is found. When the system works, when an officer follows procedure, gives every reasonable opportunity to surrender, and fires only when a gun is aimed at him, the outcome should reinforce public confidence in policing, not be buried under political noise. The contrast with cases where wrongful convictions unravel and officers are later vindicated makes the point sharper: accountability cuts both ways.
A father's grief and the facts that remain
Royston Bacchus Sr., the father of the deceased, spoke at a vigil held for his son. His words carried the weight of a parent's loss.
Royston Bacchus Sr. told News 12 Brooklyn:
"I do not understand why it happened this way. To my son, you will not be forgotten."
A father's grief is real, and no fair account ignores it. But grief does not change what the body-camera footage recorded. Bacchus held a loaded gun. He refused every command. He told officers to shoot him. He pointed the weapon at a lieutenant standing feet away. The officer fired one round.
Several questions remain unanswered. The nature of the original harassment complaint and the order-of-protection violation that prompted the 911 call have not been publicly detailed. Bacchus's relationship to the complainant is unclear. Whether Custodio was placed on administrative leave or subjected to any internal NYPD review has not been disclosed. And the make, model, and caliber of the recovered firearm have not been released.
None of those gaps changes the core finding. The state investigated. The evidence, video, forensic, ballistic, supported the officer. The case was dropped.
In a city where police officers are asked to run toward danger every day, the least the system owes them is a fair review when they act in self-defense. Lt. Custodio got one. The facts spoke for themselves.
