New York (CNN) Eileen Echeverria says she watched her brother, New York police officer Robert Echeverria, deteriorate over the last eight years.

Echeverria said she told the department her brother was a danger to himself and others multiple times. Twice, she says, the department took his weapons away. Twice, she says, they gave them back.

Her brother had called and said he'd kill himself before, she told CNN on Monday, but the last time was different because he was unraveling and in financial ruin.

Officer Echeverria, 56, a 25-year veteran of the force and member of the Strategic Response Group -- an NYPD rapid-reaction unit -- died by suicide Wednesday from a self-inflicted gunshot wound, law enforcement sources told CNN.

"I watched my brother deteriorate to a point that I begged NYPD to help him and get him back and they didn't," she said. "So I'm gonna remember my brother from 10 years ago and not the one I saw last. That's what I'm going to remember about my brother, he deserves that."

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