A New York police sergeant shot himself at his residence on Tuesday, October 15, night making him the 10th New York Police Department officer to die by suicide this year.

The unnamed 35-year-old cop died from a self-inflicted gunshot injury to the head, according to the sources. The officer was declared dead at a hospital at 10 p.m.

Further data was not promptly clear, but death is part of something that Police Commissioner James O’Neill has defined as a “mental health crisis.“

In June, the head cop of the nation’s biggest police force said policemen killing themselves “cannot be allowed to continue.”

“Officers spend so much of their time assisting others. But before we can assist the people we serve, it is necessary that we first help ourselves,” he said, urging those who might require help to seek mental health support.

Police Commissioner James O’Neill added, “Accepting advice is never a symbol of weakness, in fact, it’s a symbol of great strength.”

Last month, city council members proposed a bill that would ask the NYPD to “undertake a specific number of authorized clinicians to present mental health support and information to all New York City police deputies.”

The officer’s suicide on Tuesday was the 10th for the NYPD this year and the 8th since June. According to a nonprofit organization that follows law enforcement suicides, at least 169 police deputies, 24 of whom were retired have killed themselves in 2019.

An NYPD Officer Shot Himself, Making Him 10th Officer To Die As A Result Of Suicide This Year