Man Flees N.J. Cops, Falls Off Cliff, Dies In Fort Lee

A 21-year-old man died after fleeing police and then falling off a cliff, authorities said.

Denian Alberto Melo of the The Bronx was found near Henry Hudson Drive, the roadway beneath the Palisades Cliffs, by a police officer on Wednesday in Fort Lee, according to a release from Bergen County Prosecutor Gurbir S. Grewal.

The cliffs are about 832 feet high.

The investigation is being conducted by the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office, Major Crimes

Unit, under the direction of Chief Robert Anzilotti.

The incident happened at approximately 8:42 p.m., after members of the Palisades Interstate Parkway Police Department conducted a motor vehicle stop in Fort Lee Historic Park, located on Hudson Terrace in Fort Lee, according to the BCPO.

This stop involved a narcotics investigation being conducted by the PIPPD.

At the time of the stop, Melo was a passenger in the vehicle. During the interaction with the PIPPD officers, Melo fled on foot into a nearby wooded area, according to the BCPO.

Officers from the PIPPD and other jurisdictions searched the area but were not initially able to locate Melo. The other occupants of the vehicle remained on scene, were not charged with any offense and were later released.
On Wednesday, at approximately 6:06 a.m., the body of Melo of the PIPPD. A final determination as to the cause of death will be made by the Bergen County Medical Examiner after an autopsy is completed.

Photo by Wikimedia Commons