Cop Who Chased Man Off Cliff In Hudson County Faces Grand Jury

HUDSON COUNTY, NJ — A state grand jury has declined to charge a Guttenberg police officer who pursued a 26-year-old man who fell to his death.

Police were chasing Brandon Lee Ortega of Mexia, Texas through Guttenberg on Nov. 12, 2024 when he jumped over a railing and fell 68 feet, prosecutors said.

Ortega was identified in a GoFundMe set up for him as a Texas father of three.

By state law, the Attorney General's Office investigates all situations in which someone dies during a police encounter.

After testimony and evidence was presented to a grand jury, the jury voted “no bill" on Monday, declining to file charges against Guttenberg Officer Brandon Sauerwald.

According to the investigation, shortly after 11 p.m. Guttenberg police headed to 68th Street and Bellevue Avenue after a 911 caller reported a disturbance.

Sauerwald and Detective Jaber Jaber met with a landlord who said he had rented a room to a woman from California, but she never checked in. Instead, two men and a woman with a dog tried to enter the property.

When the owner stopped them, an argument ensued and Ortega brandished a "blue firearm," a witness said.

Sauerwald located Ortega near 7000 John F. Kennedy Blvd. East. During a brief foot chase, Ortega fled and attempted to carjack someone, prosecutors say.

The pursuit continued and Ortega climbed over a railing.

Fire department and EMS staff responded and pronounced Ortega dead. They found a gun with a black grip and metallic blue coloring, prosecutors say.

Footage Released

Video footage and audio of 911 calls were released on Wednesday.

The first bodycam video shows police looking over the railing next to the Galaxy condominium towers. "You think he fell over?" one asks.

See them here.

READ MORE: Man Who Fell To His Death During Hudson County Police Chase ID'd As Texas Dad Of 3