A 14-year-old suspect accused of gunning down two New Jersey police officers, killing one of them, has been charged with murder in connection with the deadly shootout in Newark on Friday night.
The gun battle erupted just after 6:30 p.m. at Carteret St. and Broadway, near a McDonald’s and a White Castle burger place not far from the Passaic River, according to the Essex County Prosecutor’s Office.
The teen gunman reportedly fired off more than two dozen shots as officers closed in, fatally striking 26-year-old Det. Joseph Azcona. He responded to the area as part of a Newark police intelligence team seeking a suspect in an illegal weapons investigation, police said.
“He didn’t even get a chance to step out of the vehicle before he was struck,” Emanuel Miranda, Newark’s director of public safety, told reporters during a news conference on Saturday.
A second officer, who has not been identified, was also hit and critically wounded in the flurry of gunfire, authorities said. Both officers were rushed to University Hospital, where Azcona, a five-year veteran with the force, was pronounced dead just after 2:30 a.m.
“We here at the NJ State PBA are heartbroken to share that an officer from Newark PD has made the ultimate sacrifice in the line of duty,” The New Jersey State Policemen’s Benevolent Association said in a statement.
Newark Mayor Ras Baraka said the second officer remained hospitalized with non-life-threatening injuries and was listed in “stable condition” as of Saturday afternoon. He also condemned the violence in Newark as a “heinous, callous disregard for humanity.”
In total, five people have been arrested so far, including the 14-year-old suspect, who has been charged with murder, attempted murder and possession of illegal weapons, Essex County Prosecutor Theodore N. Stevens II told reporters.
The teen was also shot during the exchange and is receiving treatment for injuries, which are not believed to life-threatening.
None of the suspects’ names have been released.
Few other details have been provided about the encounter, including what occurred in the moments leading up to the shooting. Witnesses reported hearing an explosion of gunfire after they spotted officers running down the street along a commercial strip between a McDonald’s and White Castle in Newark.
Gov. Phil Murphy confirmed in a post on X Friday night that he had been “updated on the shooting.”
“Please pray for these officers, their families, and all our men and women in uniform who put their lives on the line to keep us safe,” Murphy stated.
Attorney General Matthew Platkin’s office was also closely monitoring the situation.
With News Wire Services
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