Young man dead after scuffle with US police

A 21-year-old Brooklyn man has been shot dead during a scuffle with two police officers.

New York housing police said one male and one female officer encountered the man, identified by authorities as Erickson Brito, at around 1pm local time on the ninth floor of Van Dyke Houses in the Brownsville neighbourhood.

The New York Police Department's housing bureau officers were responding to an emergency call reporting a suspicious person.

When they asked for his ID, a scuffle ensued.

A police spokesman said the man grabbed one officer's baton and struck both police in the head, before the officers opened fire.

One officer suffered a gash, the other contusions.

They are in a stable condition in hospital.