Getty Videos and photos capture the scene of the New Jersey active shooter situation.
Dramatic videos and photos have emerged showing the massive law enforcement response to a bodega where at least two active shooters were holed up after the possible “ambush” style shooting of a police officer in Jersey City. You can see the videos throughout this article.
The slain officer was identified as Joe Seals, a veteran Ceasefire officer who took guns off the street and was a married father of five.
When it was over, five people were dead inside a grocery store (2 suspects and 3 civilians), an officer was shot and killed, and two other officers were also shot, but the latter were treated and released from the hospital, according to Police Chief Mike Kelly.
In a news conference, authorities said that the three civilians were shot by the suspects. Police said in the news conference that multiple people were deceased inside the building. They said all children were accounted for. The mayor said in the news conference that there was no indication it was a terrorist attack, but he later tweeted that it’s believed the suspects targeted the location they attacked.
The first two civilians named were the store owner Lean Ferencz and her cousin Moshe Deutsch. The third civilian victim was named as Miguel Jason Rodriguez by Williams Machazek, the pastor of Iglesia Nueva Vida in Newark. He spoke to North Jersey.com and described Rodriguez as an immigrant from Ecuador working at the store to support his family.
David Anderson was named as one of the two active shooters. The other suspect has been named as Francine Graham. Anderson and Graham were first named in a report from NBC New York. According to NBC News, Anderson had made anti-Semitic and anti-police statements on social media prior to the shooting.
There were two incidents, one in a deli and one in a cemetery. Seals was shot and killed in the cemetery in circumstances that remain murky and then the suspects ditched a stolen U-Haul outside the bodega and holed up inside it. Gunfire erupted for four hours, but they were later found deceased inside the store, which is a kosher grocery located in a Jewish neighborhood.
NJ.com reported that Seals was shot in Bayview Cemetery, and another officer was believed to be shot near Martin Luther King Drive and Bidwell Avenue.
The scene of the Jersey City active shooter situation.
Multiple active shooters were involved, according to police dispatch audio, which early on said there was at least one man and woman involved, dressed all in black, and possibly wearing trenchcoats. There was a Jewish school with about 40 children located and locked down next door to the standoff inside the bodega. The police chief later said that “preliminarily” cops think the suspects were both male. He said police aren’t sure of the motive.
#BREAKING: Video shows the moment gunmen opened fire on police officers in Jersey City. At least 1 officer shot.
All of the city’s schools were on lock down amidst reports that, at one point, the gunmen were randomly firing. There were unconfirmed reports of hostages and suspects down, and at one point police said on the scanner that the U-Haul the suspects were driving was “hot.” Later it turned out that, according to the chief bomb-making materials in the U-Haul were being studied, and all hostages and suspects were dead.
Here’s what you need to know:
The ATF Was Responding to the Scene & Multiple People Were Inside the Bodega
Massive police response to an alleged police involved shooting in Jersey City today….
At least one of the active shooters was firing at police from the corner grocery store in Jersey City, New Jersey, and more than one officer was shot. “He’s shooting again. He’s shooting again,” an officer said on the police scanner. Tactical officers were responding. “Keep your people safe,” one officer said on the dispatch audio.
The ATF confirmed: “Breaking: @ATF_Newark Agents responding to reports of an active shooter in Jersey City, NJ.”
NBC New York described what happened to Seals as an “ambush,” and said he was shot in the head.
Every Jersey City school was locked down. Scanner traffic indicated that four other people might be in the bodega. “We’ve got movement in the store,” an officer said on the scanner at 2:41 p.m. Offices said a male had “popped out” of the store and then went back in. “Use caution. The U-Haul nearby is hot,” an officer said, referring to the vehicle the suspects arrived at the store in. They said pipe bombs were in it.
Police Worried About Devices as They Surrounded the Scene at JC Kosher Supermarket
Officers described flash bangs, officers on rooftops, and the need to avoid crossfire, as they dealt with a dramatic and dangerous scene outside the bodega. Periodically on the scanner, officers described a suspect still firing from inside the store.
Police described the scene as “chaotic.” The two suspects jumped out of a U-Haul van and ran into the corner store, according to scanner transmissions. A man was down inside the store, and someone had put a glass coffee pot in view. Police worried that it could be a “device.” The window in the back was garbage bag taped, police said. The bodega in question was located at Wilkinson Avenue and Martin Luther King Dr. in Jersey City. The specific address was 223 MLK Drive, according to NJ.com. Online records say that’s the address of JC Kosher Supermarket.
We need a lot of prayers right now for Jersey City officers. Keep all those involved in your thoughts.
Police were surrounding the store. They wanted to make sure that police had a “line of fire.” The New Jersey State Police wrote, “State Police assets from T.E.A.M.S., Canine Unit, Bomb Unit, Marine Services, Aviation, Field Ops, Tactical Patrol, Central Security, Trafficking, and Emergency Response Bureau are assisting @JCPoliceDept with the active shooter investigation.”
Suspects Were Described as Being ressed in Black, Possibly Wearing Trench Coats
Dispatch audio early on said there was more than one gunman. “We saw two shooters get out of the van. We saw two jump out of that van and go in,” said an officer. The description was “black male and a black female” wearing all black clothing, possibly with rain or trench coats. That officer told the dispatcher it wasn’t clear whether both shooters were still inside the store, but police didn’t see either come out. However, later reports indicated both suspects were male.
They were armed with high-powered rifles, police said. “Our officers were under fire for for hours,” said Jersey City Police Chief Mike Kelly. “We have no inkling what the motive was yet.”
The New Jersey transit police wrote, “NJ Transit Police are assisting Jersey City with an active shooting incident within the area of the west side branch. Stay clear of the area until further notice. HBLR service is suspended. ALL bus service on the West Side Branch is suspended updates to follow.”
The governor wrote, “I have been briefed on the unfolding situation in Jersey City. Our thoughts and prayers are with the men and women of the Jersey City Police Department, especially with the officers shot during this standoff, and with the residents and schoolchildren currently under lockdown.”
NJ.com reported that, at one point, “the gunmen are shooting at anyone they see on the street and… fired at the Sacred Heart School.”
On the scanner, officers made reference to clearing a cemetery.
ABC News also reported that the suspects fired long guns at arriving police.
This post is being updated as more is learned about the Jersey City active shooter situation.