We’re following a still-developing story about a police-related shooting last night, Tuesday, Sept. 29, in Kearny.
Here’s what we know at this point.
According to a source with knowledge of the incident, but who is unauthorized to speak about the shooting:
Just before 8 p.m., a Kearny police officer reportedly shot at a stolen car in front of the Kearny Applebee’s at 175 Passaic Ave. The car had been reported stolen just moments earlier from someplace on Devon Street. Video The Observer obtained of the suspect vehicle being abandoned in Newark appeared to show a white SUV, perhaps a Hyundai or Lexus.
The officer reportedly spotted the stolen vehicle and, on foot, approached it — and while doing so, the driver accelerated toward him.
It was at that moment the officer fired at the car.
We’re told the police pursued the vehicle from Kearny to Newark, but it was lost in traffic.
However, police in Newark recovered the vehicle, abandoned, shortly thereafter.
The driver, as-yet unidentified, was seen running away from the scene by a truck driver in Newark, who had video footage that unfortunately wasn’t easy to see because of the rain.
The driver of the stolen car is believed to have sustained a gunshot wound. The Newark Police Department reportedly used a K-9 dog to sniff the driver’s scent, but was unable to find him.
The Kearny officer who reportedly fired the shot is “OK, shaken but unhurt,” we’re told.
Social media reports that the driver died nearby, on the Kearny side of the Passaic River, are indeed incorrect.
The Observer will update this story as information becomes available.
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Kevin A. Canessa Jr. is the editor of and broadcaster at The Observer, an organization he has served since 2006. He is responsible for the editorial content of the newspaper and website, the production of the e-Newspaper, writing several stories per week (including the weekly editorial), conducting live broadcasts on social media channels such as YouTube, Facebook, and X, including a weekly recap of the news — and much more behind the scenes. Between 2006 and 2008, he introduced the newspaper to its first-ever blog — which included podcasts, audio and video. Originally from Jersey City, Kevin lived in Kearny until 2004, lived in Port St. Lucie. Florida, for four years until February 2016 and in March of that year, he moved back to Kearny to return to The Observer full time. Click Here to send Kevin an email.