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Woman Fires Gun During Brawl In South Hackensack Parking Lot, Officer Rescues Victim

A fight between two women that began on Route 80 ended in a South Hackensack parking lot before dawn Saturday with one of them firing a handgun several times before a nearby officer rushed to the scene and rescued the victim, authorities said.

Samantha Polanco

Samantha Polanco

Photo Credit: MUGSHOT: Courtesy BERGEN COUNTY SHERIFF
Mugshot from Saturday's incident in South Hackensack.

Mugshot from Saturday's incident in South Hackensack.

Photo Credit: SOUTH HACKENSACK PD

The Passaic County women were returning from Yonkers, where Samantha Polanco works as a deejay, when they began arguing on westbound Route 80 around 4 a.m., Detective Sgt. James Donatello said.

The 2017 BMW 3 pulled into a parking lot in an industrial area just off the highway, where the dispute got physical, Donatello said.

Polanco, 23, fired a 9mm handgun into the air during the brawl, the sergeant said.

Officer Skyler Baker, who was nearby, arrived almost instantly after hearing the shot, Donatello said.

Sgt. Domenick Mea and Officer Joseph Barbiera quickly backed him up, he said.

Police recovered the gun, a knife and three spent shell casings, the sergeant said.

They charged Polanco with aggravated assault and possession of both a handgun and a knife and sent her to the Bergen County Jail, where she remained held Saturday pending a first appearance in Central Judicial Processing Court in Hackensack.

Polanco, who lives with the victim in Haledon, made headlines last year when authorities said she resisted arrest, then kicked and spit on Fair Lawn police when they stopped a car she was in on Route 208 and discovered an outstanding warrant.

Fair Lawn PD: Woman Wanted On Warrant Kicks, Spits On Police, Damages Cruiser On Route 208

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