BERGEN COUNTY, N.J. (1010 WINS) — An alleged carjacker who stole vehicles from New York City to New Jersey was apprehended on the George Washington Bridge early Sunday morning after prosecutors said he attacked multiple officers with a knife.
The series of connected events began not long after 2:30 a.m. when the South Hackensack Police Department responded to a business on Route 46. Officers found a crashed vehicle at the scene, and a separate vehicle was reported stolen.
The Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office said that the motorist who crashed the vehicle—which was later determined to have been stolen out of New York City in an armed carjacking—abandoned it near the business before unsuccessfully attempting to steal a different car.
Soon after this failure, however, officials said the suspect made a second, successful attempt. He stole a different car, which allowed him to flee the scene before police arrived.
Prosecutors said that not long after the suspect fled, the vehicle he stole in South Hackensack was found disabled on the George Washington Bridge. Officers with the Port Authority Police Department responded and quickly located the suspect.
“The suspect was in possession of a knife and attacked the officers,” the prosecutor’s office said. “He also attempted to steal a police patrol vehicle during the confrontation.”
Police ultimately detained the suspect and he was transported to an area hospital for evaluation.
Three Port Authority Police officers were also taken to an area hospital and treated for non-life-threatening injuries. They have since been released, officials said.
The suspect, identified as Uvaldo Gonzalez, of the Bronx, remains in custody with charges pending. Prosecutors said that his identity is being withheld while criminal charges are filed and “additional investigative steps are completed.”
A joint agency investigation is ongoing.