A New Jersey sheriff’s officer plunged to his death when he fell out of a ninth-floor window in Jersey City on Friday morning.
Hudson County Sheriff’s Officer Justin Rivera was on duty with at least two other officers inside the Hudson County Administrative Building on Newark Avenue just before 9:30 a.m. when the tragedy occurred.
First responders found the 29-year-old officer outside the building on Central Avenue and transported him to Jersey City Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead roughly 30 minutes later, Hudson County Prosecutor Esther Suarez announced.
Suarez did not reveal the reason for Rivera’s fatal fall, but ruled that Rivera’s death “appears to be accidental in nature at this time.”
One witness recalled hearing glass break before watching Rivera hit the ground.
“I heard glass shatter and then immediately looked up, and saw a guy coming straight down,” witness Steve Roosen told CBS New York. “I saw the officers perform CPR, maybe, three times, and then just stop.”
Roosen said he saw two people looking out the broken window down to the street after the incident.
No cause of death was announced as officials await the results from the medical examiner’s office.
The Hudson County Administrative Building was closed to the public at the time because of an unrelated power outage.
Tributes poured in for Rivera Friday afternoon as local officials remembered him as an excellent officer and an outstanding young man.
“Officer Justin Rivera was just 29 years old and he had his whole life ahead of him. But now because of a tragic accident he is gone. Nothing that we say or do can change that,” Hudson County Sheriff Frank Schillari said.
“(He) was a great young officer who exemplified the highest ideals of integrity, compassion and professionalism. He is lost to us all but he will never be forgotten.”
The Hudson County Sheriff’s Superior Fraternal Order of Police memorialized their fallen member.
“Officer Rivera was a valued member of our department and a dedicated public servant who served our community with honor, integrity, and unwavering commitment. His loss is felt deeply across our ranks and throughout the community they so faithfully protected,” the order said. “Rest in peace, Officer Rivera. Your service will never be forgotten.”
Rivera, a father, lived in Bayonne, where he coached boxing out of his family’s martial arts studio, CBS New York reported.
Bayonne Mayor Jimmy Davis called Rivera’s death a “tragic loss” of one of his city’s protectors.
“We are all heartbroken over the tragic loss of life of one of Bayonne’s protectors. A Hudson County Sheriff’s Officer, Bayonne resident, and once Bayonne Police Officer died while on duty in JC this morning. The City of Bayonne offers up our condolences to his family,” Davis wrote on X.
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