MANVILLE BOROUGH, NJ (Somerset County) – A Somerville man was indicted for the attempted murder of a Manville Borough Police Department lieutenant, according to Somerset County Prosecutor John P. McDonald.
A Somerset County Grand Jury on Sept. 13 returned an eleven count Indictment charging Brian Niziolek, 37, with first-degree attempted murder, second and third-degree aggravated assault, second-degree eluding, second-degree burglary, second-degree unlawful possession of an assault weapon, second-degree unlawful possession of a handgun, third-degree resisting arrest, third-degree motor vehicle left, fourth-degree possession of a high capacity ammunition magazine, and fourth-degree unlawful possession of a knife, McDonald said.
On June 29, at around 2:19 p.m., police received a motor vehicle theft complaint and during the investigation, police responded to the last known location of the vehicle and located the vehicle being driven by Niziolek, McDonald said.
As Manville police officers approached Niziolek and ordered him to stop, he put the vehicle in drive and accelerated towards a Manville Police Lieutenant, striking him with the front of the stolen vehicle, and propelling him into another vehicle, McDonald said.
After being struck, the police lieutenant and another Manville police officer entered their police vehicle and pursued Niziolek as he fled through town striking several vehicles before he crashed into a home on North 5th Avenue and fled on foot, McDonald said.
Officers from the Hillsborough Police Department, Bridgewater Police Department, and the Somerset County Sheriff’s Office K9 unit joined in the pursuit, McDonald said.
Ultimately, the police lieutenant and the other officers found defendant hiding in the basement of a Brooks Boulevard home and took Niziolek into custody. Police located a knife in the basement crawl space where he had been hiding. A search of the vehicle stolen by defendant revealed a MAC11 9mm assault weapon and a loaded 30 round extended magazine, McDonald said.
The Grand Jury also returned a second indictment charging Niziolek with second-degree certain persons not to possess weapons based on his possession of the MAC11 assault weapon, McDonald said.
