3 Suspects Identified In NJ Cop Shooting As Manhunt Continues

Camden County police have identified three suspects in the Aug. 7 shooting of two undercover Camden County police officers. Juan Figueroa and Ammar Hill, both of Camden, and Alexander DeJesus, of Philadelphia, have all been charged with first-degree attempted murder in the shooting of two undercover Camden County police officers who were sitting in an unmarked car at a traffic light in Camden.

All three men remain at large, and police believe they are still in the Camden/Philadelphia area, Camden County Police Chief Scott Thomson said during a press conference Friday afternoon. They should be considered armed and extremely dangerous, and all have criminal histories, Thomson said. Anyone who knows their whereabouts should contact the police immediately.

The three men know each other and were described by Thomson as “co-confederates.” He didn't specify how the three men know each other. The motive for the shooting of the two officers remains unknown, but it is clear that “their intent was to kill whoever was in that vehicle,” Thomson said.

The two plainclothes officers were in an unmarked car that was stopped at a red light at the intersection of Broadway and Walnut streets at about 8:30 p.m. on Tuesday, Aug. 7, when they were approached by a van. Two men got out of the van and fired 25 rounds at them in seven seconds, Thomson said.

“It defies the laws of probability that the officers escaped with only minor injuries,” Thomson said on Friday.

One of the officers fired back, and the two people who had opened fire on the car fled the scene. The white van police believe they used in the shooting was recovered the same night. Police had no information on what they might currently be driving.

Thomson didn't provide information on which two men shot at the officers or who might be driving the van, but he said all three were equally responsible for the attack. They used semi-automatic weapons. No one was struck in the shooting.

The Camden County Police Department is working with the Camden County Prosecutor's Office, New Jersey State Police, the FBI, the U.S. Marshal's Office and the ATF on the investigation, and have “leveraged every asset and all the expertise” they have in the investigation.

The Camden County Prosecutor's Office is conducting a separate investigation into the police-involved shooting. That investigation also continued as of Friday. The officers are on leave during the investigation. Thomson said the officers will be fine physically, but there is trauma that comes along with the incident.

“They're still people,” Thomson said. “They were sitting in a car, and they were shot at 25 times by people who were trying to kill them. ... You can imagine the trauma that comes along with that.”

The prosecutor's office has released a video photos of two men they deemed persons of interest in the investigation. (See below). The reward for information in the investigation remains $60,000. A new image with all three suspects depicted was provided by the Camden County Police Department on Friday and is attached to this post.

Thomson called the three men “as extreme a threat as anyone walking the streets.”

“Whether they knew they were police officers or not, they walked up to a car unprovoked and opened fire,” Thomson said. “They are homicidal maniacs. They are sociopaths, and they don't need to be out walking the streets.”

Anyone who has information about the incident should immediately contact Camden County Prosecutor's Office Major Crimes Detective Matt McKeown at 609-820-7192. Anyone who sees them should not approach them. Information may also be emailed to ccpotips@ccprosecutor.org. Information may remain anonymous.