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Sergeant

Tommaso Popolizio

Newark Police Division — Newark, NJ

Accident

End of Watch March 3, 2007

Age 33

Tour of Duty 12 yrs

The Vigil Panel 155 ›

Gender Male

Incident Service The Sacrifice Department 57

Incident

Sergeant Tommaso Popolizio died from injuries sustained when his patrol car rolled during a vehicle pursuit.

At approximately 3:00 am Sergeant Popolizio responded with several officers to a call of drag racing on Doremus Avenue. The officers arrested a male after seeing him throw a gun into a bush. He was handcuffed behind his back and placed in the back seat of a squad car. The suspect was able to move his hand to the front of his body and climb through an opening in a Plexiglas partition. The suspect then stole the patrol car.

Sergeant Popolizio pursued the suspect in a marked Ford Explorer SUV. During the ensuing chase the stolen police vehicle and Sergeant Popolizio's SUV collided near the corner of Doremus Street and Wilson Street, causing the SUV to roll several times. Sergeant Popolizio was taken to University Hospital after the crash where he died from his injuries.

The stolen patrol car was abandoned near the crash scene. A Port Authority of New York and New Jersey police officer found the suspect hiding in some bushes nearby and took him into custody. He was charged with murder and a number of other offenses and subsequently sentenced to 30 years.

Sergeant Popolizio had served with the Newark Police Department for 12 years.

Survivors

He is survived by his wife, four children, and a brother, who is also a Newark Police Sergeant.

In Our Keeping

Permanent identifier: BO-US-NJ-6BDE7B26
Stewardship: Maintained by NeuraWeb Global Inc.
Added to badge.nw: April 2, 2026
Last updated: July 23, 2026

Honored here by 1 sentinel - 1 tribute.

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Tributes

I never knew you. I am standing here anyway.
Sergeant Popolizio gave the Newark Police Division 12 years.
Thank you for your service to the Newark community. Gone but never to be forgotten.
Rest easy, Sergeant Popolizio.

— S. Vincent Anthony, U.S. Army 1985-1993

Agency

Department Newark Police Division

Location Newark, NJ

Platform Identity npdpd.essex.nj.us.gov.nw

Service Record

End of Watch March 3, 2007

Tour of Duty 12 yrs

Age 33

Gender Male

Incident Details

Cause Accident

Cause Detail Vehicle pursuit

Weapon Automobile

Offender Sentenced to 30 years

Sergeant Tommaso Popolizio is one of 10,088 officers lost to accidents in the line of duty across the full record of this memorial — 31% of all 32,508 officers honored here.

In NJ, 258 of 646 officers were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 39.9% of this state's fallen. That is 8.9 percentage points above the national rate of 31%.

At Newark Police Division, 19 of 58 officers on record were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 32.8% of this agency's fallen.

Newark Police Division

of 58 officers

32.8% Accident

NJ — Statewide

258

of 646 officers

39.9% Accident

Nationwide

10,088

of 32,508 officers

31% Accident