NORTH ARLINGTON, N.J. — A Bayonne man was shot by law enforcement Saturday after allegedly firing a handgun at a ride-share driver and stealing the vehicle in Kearny, officials said.
The incident began around 3:51 p.m. when Kearny police, under Chief Scott Macfie, responded to a reported carjacking near Belleville Turnpike and Kearny Avenue, according to Bergen County Prosecutor Mark Musella. Investigators determined that the suspect, identified as 42-year-old Emmanuel Etienne, was a passenger in the ride-share vehicle when he fired a handgun from the backseat toward the driver. The bullet struck the interior of the car but did not hit the driver.
The ride-share driver was able to exit the vehicle, and Etienne then took control of the car and fled the scene. Law enforcement located the stolen vehicle within an hour on Porete Avenue in North Arlington, with Etienne behind the wheel.
During the encounter in North Arlington, Etienne was shot by police officers. He was transported to a local hospital, treated for a gunshot wound, and later discharged into police custody.
Multiple charges filed
Following an investigation by the Kearny Police Department, Etienne was charged with first-degree attempted murder, first-degree armed carjacking, second-degree possession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose, and third-degree possession of a firearm.
Etienne is being held at the Hudson County Correctional Center in Kearny pending further court proceedings.
The Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office, under the direction of Chief Matthew Finck, is overseeing the investigation into the police encounter.