The mayor of Belleville, New Jersey, posted on social media that two police officers were hit by a vehicle as a suspect tried to escape on Sunday night and were sent to the hospital for treatment.
“According to preliminary information, a Belleville police officer was struck by a vehicle while trying to apprehend a fleeing suspect. An officer subsequently opened fire and the suspect fled the scene,” Mayor Frank Velez wrote on Facebook. “The injured officer and his partner are currently being treated at a local hospital. The officer’s injuries are reported to be non-life-threatening.”
“On behalf of the Town of Belleville, we send our condolences and prayers to both officers and their families,” he added.
A heavy police presence near Branchbrook Park on Sunday night led to chaos and chaos.
Law enforcement officers were at the scene near Branchbrook Park on Sunday night (Image: NBC New York)
NBC New York crews saw a large law enforcement presence at the intersection of Mill Street and Union Avenue as the prosecutor’s crime scene truck arrived and joined other officers.
The Essex County Prosecutor’s Office crime scene truck arrives at the scene (Image: NBC New York)
Authorities at the scene kept their distance, making it difficult to see what was happening inside the park as investigators focused most of their attention there.
A man at the scene said his friend was in the area when the incident unfolded and reported that he saw an officer being struck by a car, followed by a gun being drawn and shots being fired, giving a description similar to the mayor’s.
(Image source: NBC New York)
“So my best friend texted me and he was on his way to the football game,” said David Vazquez of Newark. “He saw a police officer being run over by a car and he said, ‘Here, like a couple of shots went off,’ and then those shots hit the back of his car, broke his window, and you know that’s crazy,” he told News 4. “So I’m here to support my partner.”
“God bless our police officers and all first responders who put themselves at risk every day to protect our communities,” Velez added in the post. “This remains an active investigation.”
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