Linden officers wounded in shootout with bombing suspect released from hospital
LINDEN, New Jersey (WABC) -- Two New Jersey police officers wounded in a shootout with bombing suspect Ahmad Khan Rahami have been released from the hospital.
Linden police say Officer Angel Padilla, a 15-year veteran, went home Monday night, several hours after he was shot in the torso. Authorities have said a bulletproof vest saved Padilla from a more serious injury.
Another Linden officer, 22-year veteran Pete Hammer, was released Tuesday. Authorities say his head was grazed by bullet or shrapnel as the officers exchanged gunfire with suspect Ahmad Khan Rahami.
A third officer, Mark Kahana, on the police force since 1997, also received medical attention for increased blood pressure.
Rahami was found after the owner of a local bar discovered him sleeping in a hallway. Believing him to be a vagrant, he contacted police who confronted the suspect.
Eyewitness News was there exclusively as the officers walked back into headquarters for the first time since the shooting, and Officer Padilla thanked his team.
"We're here today to walk back into this police department and be able to talk and say regardless of what happened yesterday, we are ok," he said.
"It was heart wrenching and to see they are both happy and in jovial moods it was very satisfying to see that," said Linden Police Captain James Sarnicki.
Officer Padilla spotted the suspect sleeping in the vestibule of the bar Monday morning.
By then Rahami's picture was out there and Padilla made the connection.
But in a split second, the suspect pulled out a gun and shot Padilla, who luckily was wearing his bulletproof vest.
The suspect aimed and shot at Officer Hammer, who was sitting in a patrol car.
Linden police posted video of Officer Hammer's release on their Facebook page:
Officer Hammer's father Peter Sr., who lives in North Carolina, was watching the intense scene unfold on TV.
"I came back in the house and my daughter Jean came down and she told me, 'Petey's all right, Petey's all right. I said what are you talking about?," he said. "She said, 'he was shot'. I went down, I fell. She told me he was all right, and everything was fine."
Officer Padilla is convinced his active shooter training saved his life and many others.
"We were trained to stay focused, and don't loose your concentration and to keep on fighting, keep on fighting to take down that threat," he said.
(The Associated Press contributed to this report.)
