The Attorney General’s Office is conducting an investigation of a police-involved shooting that occurred on Sept. 28 in Hillsborough in which a male civilian sustained fatal injuries. No one else was injured.
The decedent has been identified as Patrick Chin, 43, who lived at the address where the shooting occurred.
According to the preliminary investigation, five uniformed officers of the Hillsborough Township Police Department responded to Chin’s residence on Piedmont Path at approximately 4:10 p.m. Sept. 28 in response to a request that the police check on the welfare of Chin, according to information provided by the A.G.’s office on Oct. 18.
When the officers arrived, they encountered Chin inside the home, holding an approximately three-foot long sword, according to reports.
During the encounter, Officer George Kokinakous fired his service weapon, fatally wounding Chin.
Officers and medical personnel rendered first aid to Chin, who was transported to Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital, where he was pronounced deceased at 5:28 p.m.
The four other officers of the Hillsborough Township Police Department who were at the scene at the time of the shooting have been identified as Officer Robert Feriello, Officer Thomas Gurba, Officer Kyle Edmonds and Officer Dylan Ely. Feriello deployed OC spray at Chin during the incident, according to reports.
This investigation is being conducted pursuant to Attorney General Directive 2019-4, which implements the statutory requirement that the Attorney General’s Office conduct the investigation of any death that occurs during an encounter with a law enforcement officer acting in the officer’s official capacity or while the decedent is in custody, and which establishes clear standards and procedures for conducting such investigations.
The investigation is ongoing and no further information is being released at this time.
