Off-Duty Fairfield, NJ, Police Officer Gerald Veneziano, Shot Multiple Times by at Least Two Men in Black Dodge Magnum

Off-duty Fairfield, NJ, police officer Gerald Veneziano, in drug-induced coma after being shot multiple times by at least two men in Dodge Magnum station wagon.

It is a real shame that another law enforcement is clinging for his life after being shot in the abdomen Saturday night. Fairfield, N.J., police officer Gerald Veneziano was shot by at least two men in a Dodge Magnum station wagon, which was parked a few blocks form police headquarters, in an industrial park on Fairfield Road, according to The Star-Ledger. Veneziano, 26, before he was shot, gave a colleague at the station the car's license plate number to run a plate check because it seemed suspicious. He was found shortly thereafter partially conscious and suffering from multiple gunshots.  He was reportedly shot after he approached the vehicle. This is a truly sad turn of events and it is my hope that the perpetrators will be caught and brought to justice.

Veneziano, a three-year police veteran, came upon the car at 300 Fairfield Road around 6:15 p.m. Saturday,acting Essex County Prosecutor Robert Laurino said. The patrolman rang headquarters on his cell phone, but the officer he reached was unable to run the Magnum’s plate at that moment because of an unrelated emergency. Veneziano got out of his silver Volkswagen Passat and approached the Magnum, the acting prosecutor said. Beyond saying "there was some type of motor vehicle incident,’’ Laurino would not detail what prompted Veneziano to become suspicious or why he approached the vehicle.

After the shots were fired, 911 calls came in, the prosecutor said. Officers arrived to find their co-worker on the ground, but Laurino would not say how many times Veneziano was struck. Authorities initially said he was hit multiple times in the abdomen, leg and torso. Veneziano was not wearing a bullet-proof vest. The also prosecutor declined to say how many shots Veneziano fired or whether he struck his assailants. Laurino said besides providing the plate number, Veneziano gave police a description of the car, noting it had tinted windows and was occupied by at least two men. He would not say whether the Magnum’s license plate was a New Jersey tag or if authorities were able to track down the vehicle’s owner. Source: Star-Ledger

It is a real shame the members of the law enforcement community across this country seem to be under siege by armed thugs bent on inflicting as much harm as they possibly can. Authorities have launched a massive manhunt for the gunmen. A $40,000 reward, including $10,000 provided by the New Jersey State Policeman's Benevolent Association, is being offered for information leading to an arrest, according to 1010WINS.

Photo credit: Officer Gerald Veneziano, The Star Ledger