NJ identifies man, police involved in deadly Long Branch standoff

LONG BRANCH — The state has identified the 34-year-old man and three Monmouth County police officers involved in a deadly standoff in Long Branch last weekend.

Mark Walker, of Virginia, shot one officer in the leg as police tried to serve a warrant at an apartment in connection with a homicide investigation on Friday night, according to the Office of the Attorney General.

Members of the Monmouth County Emergency Response Team were called to the scene, as officers retreated to outside the building.

By 2 a.m. on Saturday, a fire broke out in the apartment at 274 Chelsea Ave. where Walker had barricaded himself, authorities said, and Walker ran out while shooting at law enforcement.

Patrolmen Eric Voorand of Manalapan Police, Daniel Murphy of Howell Police, and Omar Akel of Middletown Police, respectively - all returned fire and Walker was killed.

The state Attorney General's Office is now probing the case as is standard with all police-involved shootings.

Walker had at one point been holding a newborn baby during the standoff, according to NBC 4 New York and Asbury Park Press, which cited unnamed sources.

The two-week-old infant was unharmed, both reports said.

The fire during the standoff damaged the top floors of the building where two families had been tenants for over 30 years, according to a GoFundMe page created to assist the Itzol family.

As of Wednesday night, the campaign had raised about $33,000, roughly half of its goal.