PATERSON, N.J. (1010 WINS) — A man accused of carjacking an Amazon delivery vehicle in New Jersey Thursday afternoon was arrested after a wild police pursuit ended on a set of train tracks in Paterson.
Jerry Speziale, Paterson’s public safety director, told 1010 WINS the incident began around just before 4 p.m. when two police officers in a patrol car noticed the Amazon vehicle blow a stop sign.
Speziale said the officers saw the Amazon employee was seated on the passenger’s side of the vehicle and another man was driving.
“He's opening the side door – the passenger door –and he was flagging to the police to tell them he was in distress,” Speziale said of the Amazon employee.
He noted that the employee was shoved into the passenger side of the vehicle by the other man, who allegedly carjacked the Amazon Prime van while the victim was making deliveries in Paterson.
The officers noticed the employee’s signal for help and began following the vehicle in attempt to get the driver to pull over, Speziale said.
The accused carjacker did not stop, and officers continued to pursue the van for about five minutes, Speziale told WINS.
The pursuit eventually came to an end at East 16th and Lafayette streets, when the Amazon van “got hung up” on tracks for the New York, Susquehanna and Western Railway – a freight train line.
“The police officers turned on to the railroad tracks and when he tried to exit the vehicle, they were able to apprehend the suspect,” Speziale said.
The suspect was taken into police custody and the Amazon employee was rescued from the van unharmed.
Speziale noted that the investigation remains ongoing and did not confirm if the suspect was armed with any weapons.
He added that the train tracks are active and authorities had to notify the train company to halt any incoming trains.