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Edgewater police quickly restored order, with help from their Cliffside Park and Fort Lee colleagues, after finding the injured woman among several people fighting in the parking lot on River Road late last Wednesday, Police Chief Donald Martin said.
EMTs took the victim to a local hospital with a head injury, Martin said.
Officers, meanwhile, grabbed Amakar Albuja, 19, of West New York -- and the bat -- after finding him holding it, they chief said.
They also seized the alleged assailant, Gerard Soriano, 27, of North Bergen after reviewing surveillance video and interviewing witnesses, he said.
The officers were arresting both when Albuja’s sister, Bridget Albuja, 26, of West New York assaulted one of them, Martin said.
Gerard Soriano – who records show has a criminal record in Bergen County dating back to 2013 -- was charged with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon and other weapons-related offenses.
He remained held Tuesday in the Bergen County Jail pending a first appearance in Central Judicial Processing Court in Hackensack.
Amakar Albuja was charged with weapons offenses and disorderly conduct. Bridget Albuja was charged with aggravated assault on a police officer. Both were released pending court action under New Jersey’s 2017 bail reform law.
Martin thanked officers from the neighboring communities while praising all of those who responded..
They “entered into a chaotic scene and were safely able to de-escalate the situation and make the proper arrests,” the chief said.
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