Shocking body cam footage shows a crazed New York man suddenly lunging at a cop outside a California precinct — repeatedly stabbing the officer before finally being shot dead.
The newly released footage shows Deyaa Abdelhadi Halaibeh, 28, first knocking over and attacking a Target employee while stealing an eight-inch chef’s knife he used to attack the cop.
Halaibeh — thought to have traveled to California from the Empire State just days earlier — then hustled over from the Target to the nearby Santa Monica Police headquarters, buzzing a call button to speak to an officer as two other people waited ahead of him.
“What’s in your jacket?” the responding officer asks as the nervous-looking caller keeps his right hand in his jacket breast pocket. “I’m kind of nervous with your hand in your jacket like that.”
Halaibeh responded, “You’re nervous?” — before taking at the knife and lunging at the cop, the video shows.
The chaotic footage then shows the officer making a mad dash from Halaibeh, who managed to stab him multiple times before being fatally shot, police said while releasing footage of the Oct. 5 horror.
“I’m hurt — I’m stabbed,” the officer tells colleagues who rush out to the sound of gunshots.
“Without warning, the individual attacked the officer while pulling a knife from his clothing. The suspect slashed and stabbed the officer,” Santa Monica police said in a statement.
“The wounded officer sustained multiple severe stab wounds to his neck and shoulder region, requiring immediate trauma care.”
Despite the violent ambush, the officer survived and was discharged from a hospital the following day. His protective vest was what saved him, police said.
Halaibeh has no criminal history in California or priors with the Santa Monica Police Department, according to cops — who did not say why he is thought to have traveled thousands of miles from New York to California. Police did not say where he lived in New York.
“Investigators are examining the suspect’s background, including his mental health history and possible motivations for this targeted attack on law enforcement.”
