'Heroic' Morris Co. Officer Honored For Rescuing Woman From Carjacking

MORRIS COUNTY, NJ — A Morris County police officer will be recognized for apprehending a carjacking suspect as he attempted to pull a woman out of her vehicle following a multi-town chase on Route 10 last year.

Patrolman Brad Keyes of the Roxbury Township Police will be recognized as a Valor Honoree for the annual 200 Club of Morris County awards celebration, which recognizes outstanding service by first responders.

The 2023 Valor and Meritorious Awards Ceremony will be held at 5:45 p.m. on Thursday, April 27 at Birchwood Manor in Whippany.

"The swift and decisive actions of Patrolman Brad Keyes were nothing short of heroic and prevented this dangerous and reckless man from putting more lives at risk that day," the 200 Club of Morris County said.

Keyes' recognition stems from an incident on April 1, 2022, when authorities say they responded to the Walmart parking lot in the Flanders section of Mount Olive to assist South Orange police with a carjacking investigation.

Read more: Carjacker Sentenced In Connection With Morris County Crime Spree

Officers were called to another carjacking in the parking lot of the ITC South Shopping Center while they were there.

The suspect, identified by the Morris County Prosecutor's Office as Howard Parks, 55, threatened the vehicle's owner before taking the car and fleeing the parking lot, according to police.

Authorities said Parks attempted to rob a Wells Fargo Bank in Flanders about 20 minutes later. According to officials, Parks pretended to have a gun and passed a note demanding money before fleeing the bank and heading into Roxbury, where he was located by Keyes.

"While trying to evade Patrolman Keyes, the man dramatically increased his speed to over 100 mph, weaving dangerously between cars," the club said.

Parks was followed by Keyes into Randolph, where he crashed with a Honda Accord stopped at a red light at Route 10 East and Dover Chester Road.

According to police, the suspect exited the vehicle that he had carjacked and attempted to carjack another that was stopped at the same traffic light.

With Keyes close behind, Parks ordered the woman to exit the vehicle and attempted to pull her from the driver's seat, according to police. "He single-handedly apprehended the suspect and took him into custody until other officers arrived on scene. In doing so he also suffered minor injuries," officials said.

The driver of the other vehicle involved in the crash sustained non-life-threatening injuries, authorities said.

Parks was sentenced on March 17, to an aggregate sentence of 21 years in prison, subject to the No Early Release Act, which mandates that he serve 85 percent of his sentence before becoming eligible for parole. He was also sentenced to three years of parole supervision upon release, Morris County Prosecutor Robert J. Carroll said.