Three Jersey City police officers suffered minor injuries in a scuffle with a 32-year-old drug suspect not far from the scene of the hate-fueled shootout that left three civilians and a police detective dead earlier this month.
A city spokeswoman tells News 4 the trio of cops was responding to an app report of possible drug activity near Rutgers and McAdoo avenues around 11:15 a.m. Thursday. As they investigated, Jamel Bolden allegedly pulled out a gun and fired at least a shot in the area.
It wasn't clear if he was aiming for police or if the weapon was even fired on purpose; there were no reports of officers firing their guns. Bolden was arrested at the scene, which is nearby a grocery store and a church. He is expected to be charged with resisting arrest, among other crimes.
A witness described a chaotic fray, telling News 4 it was a heavy, hands-on fight and that he saw the officers, two of whom had been on foot patrol in the area when they responded, taken away with abrasions to their hands and wrists. He also described a huge police presence. An officer at the scene later told News 4 that while the investigation is ongoing, the scene was considered under control within about an hour.
Earlier this month, a man and woman allegedly bent on taking out law enforcement and Jewish people stormed a kosher supermarket in Jersey City with rifles. The standoff, less than a mile from the scene of Thursday's gunfire report, lasted for hours. Nearby schools were locked down.
Ultimately, three civilians and a veteran police detective were killed. The two suspects were found dead in the grocery store when the gunfire ended.
