Reward for information leading to the capture of the4 suspects exceeds $75,000.00 after private donations join in to turn up the heat on the suspects.
At least one gunman attacked the home of two Camden County, New Jersey police officers and their 10-day old infant earlier this week in what the police chief has since labeled a “targeted attack,” which came days after two Los Angeles deputy sheriffs were ambushed by gunfire in their vehicles.
KEY FACTS
The officers and their baby were not injured in the Tuesday attack, Camden Police Chief Joseph Wysocki said at a Thursday press conference.
Investigators believe two suspects, driven by a third, pulled up outside the officers’ Camden County home before midnight on Tuesday and sprayed bullets, with at least two piercing the front door.
“I do know that this was a targeted attack against this residence and the officers inside,” said Wysocki, who described the couple as “two really good officers” who were “constantly interacting with members of the community.”
Both officers were on leave following their child’s birth on September 5—the man, a four-year veteran of the county department, and the woman, a two-year member of the force (their names have not been made public).
CRUCIAL QUOTE
“It shocks the conscience that this occurred,” said Chief Wysocki. “We’re looking into every arrest that they have had. We’re not going to leave a rock unturned.”
KEY BACKGROUND
The attack on the officers’ home follows an attack on two Los Angeles County sheriff’s deputies, who were shot while sitting in their patrol car last Saturday. Both officers—one a 31-year-old woman, who is the mother of a 6-year-old boy, and the other a 24-year-old man—had to undergo surgery for their injuries. The man has been released from hospital, but the woman is still in intensive care undergoing treatment. Sheriff Alex Villanueva has cited a rising anti-police sentiment in the country following the May death of George Floyd and the ensuing months of Black Lives Matter protests.
CHIEF CRITIC
“Every week across the nation, someone is losing their life in the line of duty,” Villanueva said. “It pisses me off; it dismays me at the same time.”