Keansburg cop stabbed in pharmacy robbery undergoes surgery, mayor says
KEANSBURG - The police officer stabbed by an alleged robber who was then shot dead at a local pharmacy Thursday was undergoing surgery Friday for an injury to his arm, Mayor George Hoff said.
Hoff declined to disclose the injured officer’s identity, saying that is up to the state Attorney General’s Office, which is investigating the police-involved shooting.
The Attorney General’s Office has not released the identity of the man shot dead during a robbery at Keansburg Pharmacy, 199 Main St. or the identities of the injured officer and the other officers involved in the shooting.
The injured officer was rushed to Bayshore Medical Center in Holmdel.
“I spoke with him," Hoff said. “I was with him last night for a few minutes. He was stable, he was alert, and he was being treated for his injuries."
The mayor said the injured officer has been on the force for more than 10 years.
The officer’s parents just arrived in town from Florida to be with their son and his girlfriend, Hoff said Friday.
Hoff referred any questions about the dead man to the Attorney General’s Office, which has not responded to inquiries made Friday about the incident.
“Right now, we’re concentrating on the officers who were involved, not that we’re not concentrating on the person who was shot, but my thoughts and prayers are with the officer who was injured, with the families and with the officers who were involved in the shooting," Hoff said. “That’s my concern right now."
Police responded to the pharmacy Thursday after receiving multiple 911 calls at 3:21 p.m. reporting a robbery in progress, according to a news release issued Thursday night by the Attorney General’s Office.
“One officer was stabbed by the man," the release said. “Multiple officers fired their service weapons striking the man, who was pronounced deceased at the scene."
The Attorney General’s Office has assumed responsibility for investigating the incident, under state law that requires the office to investigate any death occurring during an encounter with law enforcement or while the decedent is in custody, the news release said.
A woman who answered the phone at the pharmacy Friday said she did not wish to speak to a reporter.
Kathleen Hopkins, a reporter in New Jersey since 1985, covers crime, court cases, legal issues, unsolved mysteries and just about every major murder trial to hit Monmouth and Ocean counties. Contact her at khopkins@app.com.
This article originally appeared on Asbury Park Press: Keansburg police officer injured in pharmacy robbery undergoes surgery
