NEW JERSEY - A
confrontation between plainclothes Bergen County police officers and a
uniformed New Jersey state trooper on the New Jersey Turnpike back in May was
all caught on a dashboard camera.
The state trooper, who was concerned about a rash of police
impersonation robberies, pulled his weapon as he investigated why the
plainclothes cops in an unmarked minivan had pulled over a car on the turnpike.
What followed was a profanity-laced tirade that escalated
quickly and could have ended tragically.
The video, which was obtained by CliffviewPilot.com, shows
the state trooper arriving at the scene. With his gun unholstered, he
approaches the minivan, which has its lights flashing. The Bergen County
officer had pulled another vehicle over.
When the Bergen officer sees the weapon, he gets angry and
the argument starts.
The trooper told the cop that because of several recent
robberies involving suspects who impersonated police he was being extra
cautious. But that doesn't even come close to settling this dispute.
The verbal jousting continued and a law enforcement turf war
played out all while two suspects sat in that vehicle and traffic zipped by.
Things escalate when a Bergen County police sergeant
arrived.
In a statement, Col. Rick Fuentes, the superintendent of the
State Police, said that in light of the recent law enforcement impersonations
the "trooper fully justified in approaching this stop with the utmost
caution."
Bergen County Police Chief Brian Higgins said in a statement
that "neither the trooper or the officers were at fault... they were all
doing their jobs."
It is easy to see that keeping the peace was not a priority.
State Police has jurisdiction on highways. It is unclear why
the county police officers were apparently stopping a motorist on the turnpike.
The plainclothes Bergen County officers involved were both
reportedly disciplined.
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