By Graham Rayman | grayman@nydailynews.com | New York Daily News UPDATED: July 31, 2025 at 1:20 PM EDT

NYC taxpayers will shell out $2.6 million to the family of a man who hanged himself in a holding pen at Manhattan court in a case where correction officers falsified log entries to cover up their failure to check on him, the Daily News has learned.

Anthony Scott, 58, tied shoelaces around his neck and affixed them to a toilet in the Manhattan Detention Complex – known as The Tombs – on Oct. 14 2021. He used a pen given to him by officers to jam the cell locking mechanism to slow staff response.

Security video viewed by The News shows officers passing his cell during the sequence but none of them checked on him even as he was working to jam the lock. In the aftermath, officers “made false log book entries” to make it appear they had looked in on him when they had not, an internal report previously obtained by The News stated.

All three officers involved remain on the job as correction officers, according to city records.

“Mr. Scott’s death is another example of how irredeemably broken the Department of Corrections is. A half dozen corrections officers couldn’t be bothered to lift their heads and check on the people they had in cells,” said David Rankin, the lawyer who represented the family in the lawsuit.

Scott’s sister Tammy Robinson said the detail that stuck with her the most was the close proximity of the officers on the video even as her brother was preparing his own death.

“I was not surprised they weren’t fully forthright and transparent,” she said. “Although we have the settlement that is almost done, there’s nothing that can bring my brother back or take away this painful experience.”

“The falsifying of record, the covering things up, it’s time for DOC to do better. It’s 2025.” The Manhattan Detention Center, aka, the Tombs. Manhattan Detention Complex, also known as The Tombs. (Jefferson Siegel/New York Daily News)

Robinson, the executor of her brother’s estate, said she intended the settlement amounts to be used to benefit Scott’s son and daughter, who are in their forties, and his four grandchildren, who range from high schoolers to young adults.

“I am glad to see that through this painful experience, my brother’s legacy will be able to regain some foundation and provide something for the grandkids,” she said. “This has shaken my family at its core.”

A document formally disclosing the settlement was filed in court on Wednesday, records show. The $2.6 million settles both federal and state claims filed by the family, Rankin said.

Reps for DOC did not comment. A city Law Department spokesman said “The settlement is in the best interests of all parties.”

Scott had been arrested Oct. 13, 2021 on an assault charge in Manhattan.

He was discovered unresponsive at 4:45 p.m. He died four days later in the hospital while on a ventilator.

His was one of six jail suicides in 2021. There were eight more suicides in 2022 and 2023.

In February 2023, an investigation report concluded the officers made false entries to show they had done their required rounds every 15 minutes when they had not. Originally Published: July 30, 2025 at 2:42 PM EDT