Police Pursue Man After Armed Carjacking

West Orange police are continuing to search for a man who allegedly used a BB gun to carjack a van on Brook End Drive in West Orange Friday night.

Officials spent nearly two-hours searching for the suspect, necessitating the use of K-9 units and a State Police helicopter, officials said Monday.

At about 11:10 p.m. March 1, a 47-year-old Hasbrouck Heights woman said she was approached by a man she said was wearing dark clothing and carrying a long handgun in the parking lot at St. Cloud Healthcare, located at 5 Brook End Drive, according to the report.

She said the man asked for the key to her Honda Odyssey and then pulled out of the parking lot and drove away in an undetermined direction on Pleasant Valley Way.

Police said they saw the van traveling on Northfield Avenue and turn right onto Gregory Avenue, where the driver pulled into a driveway, hit a flower box and fled on foot.

After the man fled, West Orange police contacted the Essex County Sheriff's Department for a K-9 unit as well as New Jersey State Police for a helicopter to assist with search.

Police ended the search at 1:30 a.m. March 2 without finding the man. 

The gun was left in the van, officials said. 

The incident remains under investigation.