New Castle County police officer Joe Szczerba was stabbed to death in a fight with a suspect he was taking into custody early this morning, officials have told the News Journal. Officer Szczerba was responding to a call about a disorderly person in the Penn Acres neighborhood near New Castle, at the corner of East Roosevelt Avenue and Fithian Drive. Somehow, as he was taking the disorderly suspect into custody, the suspect stabbed him. The officer was rushed to Christiana where he was pronounced dead. The disorderly suspect is in custody.
Senator Coons:
“Joe Szczerba was a good person and a great police officer, and I was shocked and deeply saddened to get the call that he had been murdered in the line of duty late last night. Annie and I are heartbroken by the loss. His wife and extended family, as well as the entire New Castle County Police Department, will be in our thoughts, in our prayers, and in our hearts as they cope with this tragic loss.”
New Castle County Executive Paul G. Clark:
“I met with members of his family, conveyed my profound condolences to them and assured them of my prayers and support in the difficult days ahead. My deepest sympathies go out to the family, to his fellow officers, and to all who knew him. We mourn the loss of this brave and dedicated public servant, and I ask everyone to pray for him and his loved ones.
This tragic event is a grim reminder of the danger our police men and women – along with our paramedics and other first responders — put themselves in every day to protect their fellow citizens. We owe them a deep debt of gratitude for putting their lives on the line for us.”