Two people were killed and another person left critically wounded when their car crashed while fleeing cops in tony Glen Ridge, NJ, early Tuesday, authorities said.
The deadly incident at Bloomfield and Ridgewood avenues — in the heart of the leafy enclave, near its municipal building, train station, library and an elementary school — occurred after cops received a report of an armed robbery from neighboring Montclair, law-enforcement sources told The Post.
Police started chasing a silver Hyundai Sonata with Pennsylvania plates that was suspected of being involved in the robbery, and the fleeing vehicle ended up careening off the road and crashing into a tree in a wooded area at the intersection around 5 a.m., according to sources and authorities.
The fatal chase comes just 11 days after the state attorney general reversed course on police pursuits, allowing cops to chase down cars if they were suspected of car theft to help crack down on surging auto crimes. It was unclear if the car involved in Tuesday’s chase had been stolen.
Police cars were spotted at a Montclair shopping center about a half-mile from the crash scene as the incident was unfolding, and the site’s parking lot is believed to be where the robbery took place, according to NBC.
Two people, whose names were not released, died at the scene of the crash and another person in the car was rushed to the hospital in critical condition, according to sources.
The Essex County Prosecutor’s Office referred questions about the crash to the New Jersey Attorney General’s Office, which handles the investigation in Jersey of any fatal police encounter.
The state AG’s Office did not immediately return a request for information, and no further information was available as of Tuesday afternoon.
