Newark Cops Not Indicted For Fatal Shooting; No Gun Found In Car: Prosecutors

NEWARK, NJ — An Essex County grand jury declined to indict five Newark police officers who were involved in the fatal shooting of two, 18-year-old armed robbery suspects last September, authorities announced Wednesday.

According to the Essex County Prosecutor’s Office, a grand jury returned its decision on Feb. 27, about five months after Newark residents Najier Salaam and George Richards-Meyers died from police gunshot wounds while fleeing from officers on Sept. 30, 2016.

The officers may still face an investigation by the Newark Police Department’s Office of Professional Standards, Public Safety Director Anthony Ambrose told NJ.com.

According to prosecutors, the incident began around 6 a.m. when an off-duty police officer radioed headquarters that he was following three suspects – including Richards-Meyers and Salaam - who were wanted in connection with at least two armed robberies that took place earlier that morning.

While authorities dispatched five Newark police officers to the area of North 7th Street and Abington Avenue, the off-duty officer followed the suspects onto North 7th Street while communicating their direction of travel to dispatchers.

Meanwhile, four officers - traveling in two separate unmarked vehicles - arrived on scene and turned onto North 7th Street. As they did, the suspects’ vehicle drove toward a marked Newark police vehicle that had its lights activated, prosecutors stated.

When the suspects saw the marked unit with lights activated, they immediately placed their vehicle in reverse and accelerated at a high rate of speed in the direction of the off-duty officer who had been following them, prosecutors said.

According to authorities, the off-duty officer had just exited his vehicle and was almost struck during the encounter. The suspects’ vehicle then continued accelerating in reverse and struck a marked Newark police car.

Just as the initial collision happened with the marked patrol unit, a fifth Newark officer in a marked unit heard a “popping sound” that he allegedly thought was a gunshot. As the vehicle collided with his marked unit and scraped alongside his vehicle, the officer saw what he believed was a gun pointed at him in the hand of the front seat passenger, prosecutors said.

The officer testified that “based on his observations and in fear for his life,” he fired his weapon in the direction of the front seat passenger, prosecutors stated.

After the first shots, the suspects’ car continued to reverse at a high rate of speed, ultimately colliding with one of the unmarked vehicles, which carried two additional Newark officers. As the suspects’ vehicle reversed at a high rate of speed and collided with the unmarked car, the officers inside the car allegedly “heard gunfire,” prosecutors stated.

Believing that they were being fired upon by the suspects, the officers fired their weapons in the direction of the suspects’ vehicle, fatally wounding Richards-Meyers and Salaam, prosecutors said.

The third suspect exited the vehicle and tried to flee the scene on foot before being apprehended by other Newark officers, prosecutors said.

• See related article: 2 Dead After Police Shooting In Newark

After the shooting, police recovered a black BB gun that allegedly “resembled a real handgun” near the scene. Surveillance footage allegedly showed the suspects hide the gun in the area prior to their interaction with police, prosecutors said.

Essex County Prosecutor’s Office spokesperson Katherine Carter confirmed to Patch that the recovered BB gun was not in the suspects’ car at the time of the shooting.

No other firearm was recovered from the suspects or their vehicle following the fatal shooting, prosecutors said.

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