RismadarVoice Reporters, June 5, 2026
A police sergeant in New Jersey has been charged with stealing camera equipment worth approximately $10,000 from a photojournalist who was injured while covering protests outside an immigration detention facility in Newark.
The officer, Darryl Brown of the Essex County Prosecutor’s Office, was charged with third-degree theft and has been suspended without pay pending further investigation.
According to authorities, the equipment belonged to Associated Press photojournalist Angelina Katsanis, who was covering demonstrations outside the Delaney Hall detention centre on Saturday when she was struck in the knee by a wooden beam during clashes between protesters and law enforcement officers.
As she sought medical attention at a nearby aid station, Katsanis left behind her camera bag, which contained professional photography equipment and was clearly marked with her name and contact details.
When she later returned to the area in a wheelchair, the bag had disappeared.
Katsanis said she immediately used an AirTag tracking device attached to the equipment and discovered that the bag was already being transported far from the protest site.
The tracking signal eventually led investigators to a residence in Sparta, New Jersey, reportedly linked to Brown.
Authorities said a review of body-camera footage showed Brown interacting with the journalist’s bag at the protest scene. Investigators later executed a search warrant at his home, where several of the missing items were recovered. Some of the equipment reportedly still bore Katsanis’ name and telephone number.
The AirTag used to track the bag was later found discarded along a roadside several miles from the residence.
Brown’s legal representative was not immediately identified, and attempts to reach him for comment were unsuccessful.
Reacting to the incident, Katsanis described the experience as deeply troubling, noting that law enforcement officers are expected to protect citizens and their property rather than become subjects of criminal investigations.
The protest where the incident occurred was part of ongoing demonstrations against President Donald Trump’s immigration enforcement policies. Delaney Hall, a 1,000-bed detention centre, has become a focal point of public opposition following reports of a hunger strike by detainees protesting alleged poor living conditions.
Federal authorities have denied accusations of inadequate conditions and have accused demonstrators of escalating tensions around the facility.
Katsanis sustained bruising and swelling to her leg during the confrontation but did not suffer any fractures, according to reports.
