Passaic County Sheriff Richard Berdnik died from suicide Tuesday afternoon.Passaic County SO
A New Jersey sheriff fatally shot himself Tuesday inside the bathroom of a popular Turkish restaurant, where he’d just been served a late lunch, officials say.
Witnesses say Passaic County Sheriff Richard Berdnik walked into the restroom around 3:30 p.m. followed moments later by the sound of a gunshot ringing through the eatery.
More than a dozen police cruisers and emergency vehicles descended on the restaurant, which was closed in a bid to cooperate with authorities’ investigation. Nearby streets were blocked off and a pair of helicopters also responded to the scene, according to the Paterson Press.
Authorities have not provided further details, the New York Daily News reports.
A Clifton, NJ, native, Berdnik served the Clifton Police Department for 28 years before he became Passaic County Sheriff in 2011.
