By Calvin Palmer
A shootout this morning left five New Jersey police officers wounded – two of them critically – and two robbery suspects dead.
The incident began around 5:00 in an area of Jersey City known for drug trafficking.
A police patrol spotted a vehicle wanted in connection with an armed robbery, said Police Chief Tom Comey.
As the two suspects approached the vehicle, they spotted the patrol car and one of the suspects shot at it.
“This individual came fully ready to go to war with us,” Comey said.
The suspects ran into an apartment building and barricaded themselves inside.
An hour later, a SWAT team stormed the apartment, triggering a fire fight that saw shots fired through doors and walls. When the firing stopped, the two suspects were dead.
The injured officers were taken to Jersey City Medical Center.
Mayor Jerramiah Healy said one of the critically injured police officers was shot in the face and brought to the hospital in full cardiac arrest. The other was hit in the neck. They are both described as being in a critical but stable condition.
Two other officers have lesser injuries and the fifth injured officer was discharged after treatment.
No names have been released.
[Based on reports by The Star-Ledger and Associated Press.]
