By Tuan Nguyen and Wil Cruz
DNAinfo Staff
BROOKLYN — An emotionally disturbed woman who was physically restrained by cops died while in police custody in Midwood, police said Friday.
Diana Prizova, 40, was "acting irrationally" and damaged property in her home at 1640 Ocean Ave. Thursday evening, police said. Her mother called 911, and cops arrived just before 8 p.m.
She flailed her arms at the cops, police said, and had to be restrained and handcuffed.
"It appears there was no excessive force used to subdue her," a police source said.
But Prizova suddenly went into cardiac arrest, and paramedics had to rush her to New York Community Hospital, police and FDNY officials said.
She died there Friday at 4:20 a.m., police said.
Lyudmila Prizova, Diana's mother, criticized the NYPD for excessive force, claiming that it took 10 officers to subdue her daughter, who only weighed 110 pounds. Even then, they roughed her up, the mom said.
"They dragged her like a...dog," she said Friday. "She asked them to loosen the cuffs but they didn't.
"Why did they have to do that to her?" she cried. "Oh, my beautiful baby!"
The distraught mom said Diana — who was sociable and loved playing the piano and shopping — changed in 1998 after a car accident left her with serious brain and back injuries. She turned to alcohol and drugs, and became addicted some years later, Lyudmila Prizova said.
Thursday's incident was the third time in recent months cops had to be called to Prizova's home to restrain Diana after a drug-fueled episode. Still, Lyudmila Prizova said cops went too far the last time.
"She was on drugs, but what the police did added to her death," she said.
A spokeswoman for the medical examiner said an autopsy would be conducted on Saturday.
An NYPD spokesman said the department's Internal Affairs Bureau was reviewing the case.
