A 27-year-old man experiencing a mental health crisis in a motel room in Sussex County shot down a State Police drone with an air rifle during a 10-hour standoff before shooting one trooper in the mouth and another in the abdomen when law enforcement entered the room, officials said.
Nicolas R. Martinez was charged with attempted murder and other offenses after State Police used canisters of non-lethal Oleoresin Capsicum aerosol grenade to enter the guest room at Cobmin Ridge Motel in Frankford at about 4 a.m. Wednesday, according to an affidavit of probable cause outlining the charges.
State Police were dispatched to the motel on Route 206 at around 6 p.m. Tuesday after someone who knows Martinez called a Veterans Crisis Line and said the Freehold Township resident was in “crisis mode,” the complaint said. The caller also said Martinez had a knife and a BB gun that “resembled an Uzi,” the court document said.
Trooper and crisis negotiators spent hours offering help Martinez, with him telling State Police multiple times he’d shoot anyone who tried to enter the room. There were also long periods of time when Martinez refused to communicate.
Martinez opened fire with a .22 caliber air rifle after the OC canisters were deployed finally deployed. One round hit a trooper under his vest and entered his abdominal cavity, the complaint said. Another round went through a different trooper’s mouth and exited through his ear.
Both troopers were brought to Morristown Medical Center to be treated. A State Police spokesman said Thursday there was no update on their conditions. State Police Superintendent Pat Callahan said Wednesday both troopers were expected to make a full recovery.
Martinez is also charged with terroristic threats, unlawful possession of an air rifle and other weapons-related crimes.
A spokesman for the Sussex County Prosecutor’s Office said no attorney was listed for Martinez and that a court date for a first appearance would likely be set on Monday.
Editor’s Note: If you’re facing a mental health disorder, you’re not alone. Mental health disorders affect people from all areas of life and all ages, but are treatable. Call Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration’s national helpline at 1-800-662-HELP (4357) for treatment referral and information.
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