Pedestrian struck and killed during police chase in East Orange, New Jersey

EAST ORANGE, New Jersey (WABC) — An investigation is underway after a police pursuit of a vehicle ended with a pedestrian being struck and killed in East Orange, New Jersey.

The incident unfolded around 1 p.m. on Tuesday, beginning as a police pursuit that started in Bloomfield.

Mailman Anthony Gordon was out delivering just a few blocks away when he saw the cops chasing after someone.

“Four law enforcement cars – they came down with sirens on. High speed,” he said.

The chase eventually ended in East Orange, where a pedestrian was struck on Park Avenue between Washington Street and Glenwood Avenue in the Marin Park area.

A tan vehicle, a black sedan and an ambulance were all involved in the crash. The airbags of the ambulance deployed after being hit by the sedan.

A witness told Eyewitness News reporter Michelle Charlesworth that the victim was walking on the sidewalk when they were struck.

“They were coming up Prospect. He was going at least like 60. So, by the time he came past Glenwood – he tried to make that left by the school and he didn’t make it. He clipped some car and that’s when he hit somebody else,” said witness Raheem Rogers said.

Rogers says he saw one man taken into custody.

He says he sits on the porch all the time and watches people speed through the area.

“It’s like a raceway. People just speed through here,” he said.

Residents say a police pursuit is extra risky in the area because of how many pedestrians there are. There’s a day care and bank nearby, and a playground right across the street.

Gordon said it could’ve been him that got hit.

“I’m just happy that I wasn’t in the area when it happened because this is my delivery area also, so, I’m just happy because I could have gotten hit too,” he said.

Who police were pursuing, and why remains unclear.

The New Jersey Attorney General’s Office is investigating the crash.

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