NEW HAVEN — New Haven and Meriden police are investigating after an off-duty Meriden officer’s vehicle was shot at on Thursday night.

The Patrol Division officer, whose name was not disclosed, had started driving from the Essex Townhouses at 1134 Quinnipiac Ave. at about 9 p.m. on Thursday when the shooting started and she saw a man on the sidewalk firing toward her vehicle, New Haven police said.

The officer was not injured, but the rear of her vehicle was hit several times. New Haven detectives found several shell casings and other evidence. New Haven police described her as a former New Haven officer “who transferred to Meriden a few years ago.”

Both departments are investigating whether the woman, who is assigned to Meriden’s Patrol Division, was shot at because she is an officer or whether the incident was random, Meriden police spokesman Sgt. Darrin McKay said.

McKay declined to say whether the officer would be taken off-duty or reassigned as a precaution. He said that Meriden police were grateful that New Haven’s officers responded quickly to the officer’s 911 call and for their “extraordinary efforts thusfar in their investigation.”

“Tonight every member of our agency is thankful that our officer was not injured and our primary concern is the safety and well being of our fellow officer,” McKay said in an email.

Anyone with information is asked to contact New Haven police at 203-946-6304. 

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