Police said on Friday that a Rocky Point man who hanged himself in police custody less than 48 hours earlier had not shown prior signs of suicide during his arrest and processing, but on the contrary, appeared at ease with police officers after previously resisting arrest in a Shoreham neighborhood.
"After the altercation, the officers' entire interaction with him was calm," said Lt. Jack Fitzpatrick commander of the Suffolk Police homicide squad, which is conducting an investigation into the death.
Fitzpatrick noted that the Rocky Point man, 27-year-old Jack Franqui, had previous run-ins with the law.
In December of 2011, Suffolk Police were called to Franqui's home at the time after reports of a man waving a shotgun outside, Fitzpatrick said. Upon police arrival, Franqui did not have a shotgun, but later reportedly pulled a handgun on police, resulting in a wrestling match that ended up with a gunshot firing into the ceiling of the home.
He was later evaluated at Mather Hospital, and at the time of Wednesday's incident, did not have a license to drive.
According to Fitzpatrick, on Wednesday, police received a report of a suspicious vehicle on Cordwood Path in Shoreham, an area that has seen a few burglaries recently.
The responding officer smelled marijuana in the car upon approaching and after asking Franqui to get out, he reportedly told a Doberman Pinscher in the car to 'get her,' referring to the female cop.
She slammed the door before the dog could get out, Fitzpatrick said, and after a brief scuffle, Franqui was brought to Seventh Precinct headquarters in Shirley, where he was later lodged in a cell alone.
While video cameras monitor holding cells, Fitzpatrick was unsure how a prisoner was able to have the time to fashion a noose and hang himself.
"That's part of the investigation," he said.
