New York City police say a 29-year-old officer has died after shooting himself in the head, the department's third suspected suicide in nine days.

Police say he was shot around 3:45 p.m. Friday on a Staten Island street, behind the 121st Precinct. The officer was pronounced dead at the scene.

The officer was said to be a domestic violence investigator and had been with the department for six years.

Police Commissioner James P. O'Neill released a statement on Friday remembering the three officers who had taken their lives and asserting that the department 'must end the crisis together.'

The NYPD say the 29-year-old shot himself around 3:45 p.m. Friday on a Staten Island street, behind the 121st Precinct

Police Commissioner James P. O'Neill released a statement on Friday remembering the three officers who had taken their lives and asserting that the department 'must end the crisis together'

'This is a mental-health crisis,' he said in the statement. 'And we — the NYPD and the law enforcement profession as a whole — absolutely must take action. This cannot be allowed to continue.

'Cops spend so much of their days assisting others. But before we can help the people we serve, it is imperative that we first help ourselves.'

O'Neil advocated for officers and NYPD personnel to seek out assistance when needed.

The officer was said to be a domestic violence investigator and had been with the department for six years. He was pronounced dead at the scene

His statement and the officer's death comes just a week after two officers died in suspected suicides within 24 hours of each other.

Deputy Chief Steven Silks was found dead in a police vehicle in Queens on June 5. Detective Joseph Calabrese was found the next day at a Brooklyn beach.

Police say both died from self-inflicted gunshot wounds to the head.

Those deaths prompted NYPD Commissioner James O'Neill to remind police personnel that help is available - and that seeking it isn't a sign of weakness but of 'great strength.'

Two officers died in suspected suicides within 24 hours of each other last week. Deputy Chief Steven Silks was found dead in a police vehicle in Queens on June 5. Detective Joseph Calabrese was found the next day at a Brooklyn beach.

Calabrese, 58, was last heard from on June 6 after leaving his wife at a hospital, where she was recovering from a minor procedure, the New York Post reported.

The first grade detective's vehicle was found one hour later, near the Belt Parkway in Brooklyn.

Calabrese's son, who serves in the NYPD, is assigned to the 67th Precinct, New York Daily News reported.

A photographer on the scene captured images of at least 100 people, both in uniform and plain clothes, searching the area immediately surrounding the water at the Plumb Beach rest area in Brooklyn.

A photographer on the scene on Thursday for DailyMail.com captured images of authorities searching the area immediately surrounding the water at the Plumb Beach rest area in Brooklyn for Calabrese

Calabrese was said to have been with his wife at Maimonides Medical Center in Borough Park between roughly midnight and 2am.

Calabrese did not report to work and his black Cadillac sedan was spotted at around 3am near Plumb Beach, off the Belt Parkway in Brooklyn.

A license plate reader captured Calabrese's license plate, appearing to place him driving eastbound near the Verrazano Bridge just after 2am, NBC reported.

'He didn't report to work. He had not shown up. Nobody was able to get ahold of him,' a high-ranking police source said.

Calabrese did not report to work and his car was spotted at around 3am near Plumb Beach, off the Belt Parkway in Brooklyn

At least 100 people, both in uniform and plain clothes, searching the area immediately surrounding the water at Plumb Beach in Brooklyn

People combed the beaches, the brush and searched in the water for Calabrese

Police dogs were called in to assist in a search for the detective.

'The dogs were tracking his scent and it ended at the water,' another high-ranking source within the NYPD said.

Dozens of police vehicles lined the roadway at the scene being searched for Calabrese.

Investigators combed the beaches and the brush as divers searched the waters nearby.

Some officers rode all-terrain vehicles through the parking lot, on their way to join the search effort.

Some officers rode all-terrain vehicles through the parking lot, on their way to join the search

Dozens of police vehicles are shown at the scene being searched for Calabrese

Divers searched the water Belt Parkway in Brooklyn, at the Plumb Beach rest area

Other authorities scoured Calabrese's car for evidence, with the doors and trunk wide open.

The massive search party continued throughout Thursday afternoon, as it had been over 14 hours since Calabrese was last heard from, before his body was found.

The 37-year-veteran of the force resided very near where his car was located.

Calabrese, who joined the NYPD in 1982, was assigned to the Brooklyn South homicide squad.

He also served as a chairman for the board of trustees for the DEA.

For confidential support in the US, call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-8255 or click here.

For confidential support on suicide matters in the UK, call the Samaritans on 08457 90 90 90, visit a local Samaritans branch or click here.

For confidential support in Australia, please call Lifeline on 13 11 14 or click here.