2nd Fatal Police-Involved Shooting In Same NJ Town This Week

HARDWICK, NJ — A man armed with a hunting knife was shot dead by New Jersey State Police Wednesday night in Hardwick, the New Jersey Attorney General's Office said. It is the second fatal officer-involved shooting in five days in Hardwick.

Stephen Cogelia, 32, of Hardwick, was killed by police after they responded to his home on Sunset Lake Road late Tuesday night, police said. The shooting is under investigation by the Attorney General’s Shooting Response Team, which investigates all officer-involved shootings.

Police say the Wednesday night incident began at Cogelia's family home. Cogelia's father went to State Police at Hope Station around 9 p.m. for help after Cogelia allegedly refused to leave the home, and threatened to kill his father and everyone else in the home, police said.

While the father was at the station, a relative at the home called police to say that Cogelia was back at the house and was making more threats, the Attorney General's Office said. Five troopers went to the home, and police say they heard Cogelia threaten the family with violence.

Troopers found Cogelia in a second floor bedroom, armed with a hunting knife, the Attorney General's Office said. One trooper fired his service gun, hitting and killing Cogelia. No troopers were injured.

This is the second fatal shooting involving State Police in just five days in Hardwick. On Friday, a man died after being shot during a confrontation with police on Old Mine Road. It was not clear if the shot that killed him was fired by an officer, or was self-inflicted.

• Read More: Man Armed With 2 Rifles Shot, Killed In Police-Involved Shooting

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