The Attorney General’s Office identified Raul L. DeJesus, age 43, of Newark, as the person who died during a police encounter in Newark on Thursday, January 5, 2023.
According to a preliminary investigation, shortly before 3:42 p.m., Newark Police Officer Alberto Vera approached DeJesus in the area of Orange Street and South 11th Street in Newark, in connection with an investigation of a criminal act that had occurred in Paterson on December 10, 2022.
DeJesus fled on foot through various yards before he collapsed on an embankment along Route 280 westbound, in the area of mile marker 12.8, where he was located and taken into custody by Newark Police Officer Nicholas Miller.
DeJesus was transported to University Hospital and pronounced dead at 4:41 p.m.
The Attorney General’s Office is required to conduct investigations of any person’s death that occurs during an encounter with a law enforcement officer or while the decedent is in custody.
The law requires that all such investigations be presented to a grand jury to determine if the evidence supports the return of an indictment against the officer or officers involved.