Man with meat cleaver attacks NY officer

A man who was shot by police on a crowded New York City street after he struck an off-duty detective with a meat cleaver was initially stopped because he was trying to remove a moon boot from a car he was living in, authorities say

The shooting happened about a block from Macy's department store and Madison Square Garden on Thursday, just as rush hour was getting underway.

Police said the confrontation began when two uniformed officers encountered Akram Joudeh, 32, trying to remove the immobilising boot from a parked vehicle.

As the officers approached him, Joudeh pulled out a 30cm meat cleaver and ran, police said. A group of officers chased him, and at one point shot him with a Taser, with no apparent effect.

A bystander, Jonathan Schneier, said when he left work to get coffee he saw a man holding a large knife, surrounded by officers yelling at him to drop the weapon.

Officers chased Joudeh down the street. An off-duty police detective tried to tackle him. That's when Joudeh lashed out with the knife, hacking the face of the detective, said the department's top chief, James O'Neill. Officers then opened fire.

Police fired 18 shots, striking Joudeh at least twice. He was hospitalised in a critical but stable condition, police said.