Tried suicide by cop, charged with assaulting woman, say Brick police

A Brick Township man who allegedly initiated a standoff with police, mutilated himself with a knife and tried to provoke suicide by cop, faces charges for an assault against a woman in his home.

Anthony Veltry, 51, was arrested Saturday night at his house on Lime Road, where police had been dispatched on a report of dispute. He's charged with aggravated assault and uttering terroristic threats.

According to police, Veltry, in the lower portion of the dwelling, led arriving officers to believe that he was armed with a gun. Investigators kept up a stream of communication while cordoning off the property and summoning additional personnel.

Upon appearing in the doorway, Veltry was found to hold a hunting knife, with a blade about six inches long, in one hand, and a bottle of alcohol in the other, police said.

Veltry, covered in his own blood from self-inflicted stab wounds and periodically drinking from the bottle, told officers that he wanted to die, and that they should shoot him, police said. He also retracted his comment about being armed with a gun, telling officers that he had only knives, police said.

After discussions ensued with a crisis negotiator, police said, Veltry told officers that he would "give them a show," lightly poking his abdomen with the knife before dropping it and rolling on his side, allowing officers to take him into custody..

After emergency treatment at the house, Veltry was hospitalzed, pending transport to the Ocean County Jail in Toms River.

Charges are accusations. Defendants are presumed innocent unless, and until, found guilty in a court of law.