New Canaan Police De-Escalate False Gun Threat

NEW CANAAN, CT — New Canaan police officers assisted a person in crisis Sunday night, who had falsely told the officers that they were armed.

According to a post on the department's Twitter page, the officers successfully "de-escalated" the situation, and no injuries were reported.

"Officers encountered an individual who would not show their hands, claimed to have a gun, and asked to be shot," New Canaan police wrote. No gun was found.

In an email, Lt. Jason Ferraro said that "no further information" would be released, in part due to privacy concerns under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act.

"It was ultimately a medical assist [call]," Ferraro said.

The officers involved were Lt. Farenga, Acting Sergeant Sprosta, K-9 Officer Rivera, Dispatching Officer Jarvis, Officer McCarthy, Officer Clark, and Officer Vincenzi, according to the department.

"Because our officers are specifically trained to handle these types of calls with awareness and compassion, there were no injuries or an arrest for an individual who needed help and more support," the department wrote on Instagram.