New developments were released Thursday evening about a police shooting in the Fords section of Woodbridge that left two police officers injured and a suspect dead.
The New Jersey State Policemen’s Benevolent Association tells us that a Woodbridge police officer was shot in the back, and an NYPD detective in the foot. Both were released from the hospital Thursday evening and are expected to make a full recovery.
“These guys did their jobs, and thankfully they weren’t killed,” said New Jersey State PBA President Peter Andreyev.
New Jersey Attorney General Matt Platkin said there was an “exchange of gunfire” when officers entered the building. It’s unclear how many shots were fired. PBA officials say the risk for police has never been greater.
“In the past six months, five officers in New Jersey have been shot,” Andreyev said. “It really is an epidemic around the nation, but now here we are seeing it close to home that we’ve never seen before.”
New Jersey police located a homicide suspect wanted out of New York City using an automated license plate reader. It pinged near the Raritan Hotel and Royal Albert’s Palace in Woodbridge.
“[They are] incredibly useful tools in combating both auto theft and violent crime,” said Platkin.
"Each individual agency places them in strategic spots around their municipalities or their jurisdictions,” Andreyev said. “If a wanted person is entered into the system, the database will show it.”
Neither the suspect nor the officers have been identified. The attorney general deferred questions about the New York City homicide investigation to the NYPD.
“Clearly, that suspect had no reservation on resorting to violence on something that he had already committed violence to somebody else on,” Andreyev said.
“This is also a painful reminder that police officers face tremendous risks every single day,” Platkin said.
Both police and the AG praised the collaboration across state lines.
“We’re just happy that the officers are going to be OK, they’re non-life-threatening injuries, and that they worked together as a team,” Andreyev said. “That’s what it’s all about.”