State prosecutors are accusing a police sergeant of stealing a photojournalist’s camera while the photographer was being treated at a hospital for injuries suffered at a protest near Delaney Hall, the Attorney General’s Office said Thursday.
Sgt. Darryl Brown, who works with the Essex County Prosecutor’s Office, was charged with third-degree theft. Prosecutors say he stole the camera during Saturday’s protest outside the Newark migrant jail.
“So many police officers conduct themselves with integrity, uphold the law, maintain order and public safety, and serve our communities with distinction in the face of great challenges, day in and day out,” Attorney General Jen Davenport said in a statement. “When an officer does what is alleged in this case, it is a disservice to the profession and the public.”
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The news was first reporterd by the New Jersey Globe.
The charges come as state police and Gov. Mikie Sherrill face backlash from protesters for troopers’ actions amid the volatile protests outside of Delaney Hall, where hundreds of detainees say they have been on a hunger and labor strike for nearly two weeks to call attention to conditions inside the facility.
Over the weekend, New Jersey State Police took the lead on securing the area in what Sherrill has said was an effort to avoid escalating protests. Several protesters, including journalists, have reported being arrested during the confrontations with police.
According to the Attorney General’s Office, the photojournalist was injured during Saturday’s protest and dropped a camera bag containing an estimated $10,000 worth of cameras and equipment, along with an AirTag.
Following the journalist’s treatment at a nearby hospital, they tracked the location of the AirTag to a house in Sparta Township, the Attorney General’s Office said. Investigators determined that the AirTag had been at Brown’s home, and that Brown had been working at Delaney Hall in his official capacity on May 30, according to authorities.
State officials said a search warrant was executed at Brown’s home on Wednesday, and officers retrieved several items that still had the journalist’s name and phone number on labels attached to them.
If convicted, Brown faces up to five years in prison and a fine of up to $15,000.
Brown could not be reached to comment.
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