UNION, NJ — An incident in which a Middlesex County man was fatally shot by an off-duty police officer outside a Union bar overnight is under investigation, acting Union County Prosecutor Grace H. Park announced today.
The deceased has been identified as 37-year-old Michael Gaffney of Piscataway.
An investigation into the incident began when Union police responding to Paddy’s Place early Friday morning found the body of Gaffney, who was pronounced dead at the scene. Paddy’s Place is a bar located on the 900 block of Rosemont Avenue.
The preliminary investigation, which currently involves the Prosecutor’s Office’s Homicide Task Force and Special Prosecutions Unit, the Union County Sheriff’s Office Crime Scene Unit, the Union County Police Department Ballistics Unit and the Union Police Department, determined that an altercation between Gaffney and an off-duty Newark Police Department officer led to the officer using his service weapon. The officer was taken to a local hospital for treatment of non-life-threatening injuries.
The investigation into this matter, which remains ongoing, is being conducted in strict accordance with the New Jersey Office of the Attorney General guidelines governing all investigations into incidents involving use of deadly force by law enforcement.
Anyone with information about this matter is being urged to contact Prosecutor’s Office Det. Kalebota at 908-527-4567.