Glen Rock Police Honored At Academy Graduation

GLEN ROCK, NJ — In the first in-person Bergen County Police Academy graduation since 2019, four veteran members of the Glen Rock Police Department were honored with valor awards, and a top graduate, who received special recognition for his defensive tactics, was assigned to the department, Police Chief Dean Ackermann said in a news release.

Lt. Christopher McInerney and Officer Samuel Evans were presented with honorable service awards for their actions in November 2019, when responding to a report of an armed suicidal man, who had fired gunshots inside an occupied residence. Both officers entered the house to de-escalate the situation, and persuaded the subject to put down his weapon and surrender, Ackermann said.

Officers John Tarantino and Nicholas Onove were presented with life-saving awards for their actions in December 2021 at the scene of a person struck by a train. The officers crawled under a railcar, which could have "easily shifted" to crush anyone under it, to aid and extricate the severely injured victim, and the victim survived, Ackermann said.

Additionally, academy graduate Andrew Magro was welcomed to the Glen Rock Police Department. He was presented with an award for excelling during the 80-hour defensive tactics and de-escalation portion of recruit training. He will begin his three-month field training program on June 27, Ackermann said.

"While each day, in each community, officers go above and beyond in serving the public, only the most noteworthy acts are chosen to be honored by the (Bergen County Police) Chiefs' Association," Ackermann said in the news release. "The awards are presented at each academy graduation as an example for newly graduated officers as to the level of commitment that their new profession aspires to daily."