Police: Father dies after jumping from N.J. bridge holding his 2 children
WANAQUE, N.J. — A man jumped from an overpass on Interstate 287 in Wanaque, New Jersey, with his two children Monday night. The man died, but the children survived.
The incident began around 6:55 p.m. when Pequannock police were called to a residence for a report of a man threatening to harm his family, CBS New York reports.
A woman told police she and her husband were quarreling when the husband said he was going to harm their children, police said. He took the children from the home, put them in his white sport-utility vehicle and left.
Local police then alerted state police about the abduction and violent threats.
Troopers and local police were sent out to find them. They found the man’s car on southbound I-287 at milepost 56.4 in Wanaque Township, state police said.
Detectives believe the father jumped with the children from the overpass into a wooded area near the Wanaque River, state police said.
The man somehow got over or around an eight-foot fence when he jumped. He jumped anywhere from 20 to 50 feet – CBS New York reporters had a hard time telling the exact distance in the dark.
The man was pronounced dead at the scene, while the children — boys ages 2 and 4 — were taken to St. Joseph’s Wayne Hospital with non-life-threatening injuries, state police said.