Trending Topics

Suspected carjacker slashes cop’s face, tries to steal cruiser before arrest

The suspect allegedly banged on the window of a Port Authority police cruiser before climbing in and trying to drive away; the officer was injured as he prevented the theft

US-NEWS-CARJACK-SUSPECT-SLASHED-PORT-AUTHORITY-1-NY.jpg

Views of the George Washington Bridge and Henry Hudson Parkway in Manhattan.

Theodore Parisienne/TNS

By Thomas Tracy, John Annese
New York Daily News

NEW YORK — A suspected carjacker ended a two-state spree of theft and carnage by slashing a Port Authority police officer’s face on the George Washington Bridge early Sunday, police sources said.

Uvaldo Gonzalez, 42, of the Bronx, was busted after a bloody battle on the bridge, where sources say he tried to commandeer a police car after his stolen ride broke down.

Gonzalez first stole a car in Manhattan, then headed to South Hackensack, where he crashed into a Wendy’s restaurant on Route 46 just after 2:30 a.m., sources said.

He unsuccessfully tried to steal another vehicle nearby, then carjacked a third vehicle and escaped before police arrived, according to a statement from the Bergen County Prosecutor’s office.

That car, a Toyota Sienna, broke down on the approach to the New-York bound bridge, and Gonzalez got out, sources said. He started banging on the window of Port Authority Officer Joseph Romano, who was responding to a call of a disabled vehicle, the sources said.

Gonzalez started trying to get into other cars on the bridge as Romano’s back-up, Officer Miguel Correa, arrived. And that’s when Gonzalez hopped into the passenger side of Correa’s patrol car, sources said.

Correa jumped through the open window on the driver’s side of his cop car to stop Gonzalez from stealing it when the thief pulled out a knife, slicing him in the face, sources said.

Correa, Romano and a third Port Authority officer subdued Gonzalez. All three cops and the suspect were taken to Hackensack University Medical Center for a variety of injuries.

Correa, who suffered slashes to his head and face and a broken hand, and the other two officers, have since been released from the hospital, sources said.

“Three of our officers sustained injuries, thankfully non-life threatening,” Port Authority Police Benevolent Association President Frank Conti said Sunday. “I applaud them for a job well-done, and I’m extremely happy that no one was more seriously injured. This is yet another example of the dangers of police work, and of our members stepping up and getting the job done.”

The alleged crook remains in custody and charges against him are pending, according to the prosecutor’s office.

©2024 New York Daily News. Visit nydailynews.com.
Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

Trending
Two IDOC officers were shot by Nicholas Umphenour in a hospital ambush that helped an inmate escape; a third CO was mistakenly injured by a Boise PD officer
The Rocky Mountain Gun Owners organization and two individuals filed the lawsuit against Gov. Jared Polis in 2023, saying the law infringed on their Second Amendment rights
A jury found Ismael Herrera-Mondello guilty of five counts of attempted murder on a police officer, seven counts of assault on a police officer and felony evasion of police
The Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency recently awarded Farrell, Sharon and Sharpsville police departments grants to help police track and report crime