Police Make 2nd Arrest In Shooting Of Clairton Officer

PITTSBURGH,None — Police on Thursday charged another suspect in the April shooting of a Clairton police officer during a robbery and home invasion.

Emilio Rivera, of McKees Rocks, was charged with assaulting a law enforcement officer, criminal conspiracy, robbery, burglary and other counts. Rivera, 26, was arrested Wednesday for an unrelated case in which he was accused of planning a robbery.

After the arrest, police said Rivera gave them an account of the night of April 4, when Clairton police Officer James Kuzak, 39, was shot three times and seriously injured.

Authorities said Rivera and Marcus Andrejco-Jones, 18, of Rankin, posed as FBI agents when they went looking for money and drugs at the home along Miller Avenue.

It hasn't been determined who fired the shots that hit Kuzak.

"I called my dad. I called my mom. I said, 'Look it's out. They got him,'" Kuzak told Channel 11's Jennifer Abney on Friday.

Kuzak said he wishes his family had never gone through what they did.

"They had to go through all of the emotions of 'Are we are gong to lose our son?' I can never give that back, but I will do everything I can to try," said Kuzak.

Kuzak gives the police officers who arrested Rivera credit.

"I think about how they had to think knowing they were going to arrest him. The last time he was in this position, he nearly killed someone. That's pretty intimidating, and I am glad they were willing to do it," said Kuzak.

Rivera is now in the Allegheny County Jail facing several charges, including attempted murder.

Officers said during a news conference on Thursday that they received a tip that Rivera was organizing another break-in and that they felt another person's life was at risk, which is why they moved in on him.

Investigators said they have good evidence to prove that he was the second person involved in the home invasion that left Kuzak paralyzed.

Andrejco-Jones has already been ordered to stand trial on similar charges in the case, though his mother said he was at home watching "Dancing with the Stars" when the officer was shot.

One of the robbery victims, a 45-year-old man identified in the criminal complaint only as witness No. 1, told police he opened the door after someone outside claimed to be an FBI agent. That's when the suspects burst into the home, brandishing handguns while ordering the man, a 26-year-old woman, an 8-year-old girl and 4-year-old boy "through the house at gunpoint, demanding money and narcotics," the complaint said.

Kuzak and two other Clairton officers arrived while the robbery was in progress.

The assailants fired at Kuzak moments after he knocked on the back door and announced the police presence, authorities said.

Previous Stories: May 28, 2011: Wounded Clairton Officer Looks Forward To Walking Again September 29, 2011: Local Heroes Honored By Red Cross At Ceremony June 7, 2011: Injured Clairton Police Officer Participates In Torch Run For Special Olympics May 28, 2011: Wounded Clairton Officer Looks Forward To Walking Again May 21, 2011: Clairton Officer Talks About His Road To Recovery May 20, 2011: Wounded Clairton Officer Makes First Public Appearance May 6, 2011: Police Officers Hit Court To Raise Money For Fellow Cop April 29, 2011: Death Threat Issued Against Wounded Clairton Officer April 26, 2011: Wounded Officer's Mother Thanks Community For Support April 21, 2011: Another Suspect Cleared In Clairton Cop Shooting April 13, 2011: Penguins Fans Help Raise $15,000 For Injured Officer April 11, 2011: 1 Suspect Released, Another Charged In Clairton Cop Shooting April 9, 2011: Hundreds Pray For Wounded Police Officer At Vigil April 9, 2011: Bail Denied For Man Accused Of Shooting Clairton Officer April 7, 2011: 2nd Suspect In Clairton Cop Shooting Still At Large

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