New York

Off-Duty Camden County Police Officer Saves Woman From Attacker

An off-duty Camden County officer saved a woman who was being assaulted in Manhattan Sunday afternoon. 

Officer Ryan Dubiel was spending an off day in New York to visit family and the 9/11 Memorial. While nearby his cousin's apartment, he observed an assault occurring at 10th Avenue and 55th Street in the Hell's Kitchen section of the city. 

Dubiel apprehended the attacker, a homeless 38-year-old man, at gunpoint after the man charged after a woman, grabbed her and threw her to the ground. Witnesses then called local police and Dubiel kept the man under control until law enforcement arrived.

"I just happened to be in the right place at the right time," Dubiel said. "We do this kind of stuff all the time at work. We just snap to it. The training takes over." 

Dubiel said the man was showing signs of mental instability when he spotted him attacking the 29-year-old woman. 

"I think anybody in their right mind, police officer or not, if you see someone getting attacked in the street, you should do something do help," he said. "More morally than lawfully, I had to take action."

Captain Richard Verticelli commended Dubiel for his instincts and for how he handled the attacker in a nonviolent manner.

"He knows his responsibilities as a police officer are 24 hours a day and seven days a week," Verticelli said at a press conference. "He did a terrific job."

Dubiel was named Camden County Police Department's Officer of the month in January. He was recognized for his work in arresting an armed suspect who had fired a weapon. He has been an officer for over five years and has served in the Camden County Department for two and a half years.

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