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Man Fatally Shot By New Jersey State Trooper At Molly Pitcher Service Area

CRANBURY TOWNSHIP, N.J. (CBSNewYork) - A man was shot and killed by a New Jersey state trooper at a service area on the New Jersey Turnpike on Thursday.

As CBS2's Jessica Layton reported, the shooting happened just before 3 p.m., at the Molly Pitcher Service Area in Cranbury Township.

"According to the preliminary investigation, members of the New Jersey State Police were conducting an investigation at the Molly Pitcher Service Area when the subject was shot by the state trooper at approximately 2:45 p.m. The subject was inside a pickup truck when he was shot. He was pronounced dead at the scene. No troopers were injured," attorney general Christopher Porrino said in a statement.

The identity of the deceased man has not been released, and it's not yet clear what prompted the shooting.

From the sky, a gray pickup truck could be seen smashed into a barrier outside of the service area.

The service area - located between exits 8 and 8a on the southbound Turnpike - was closed due to an active investigation. Flood lights were being brought in for an investigation that is inspected to continue into Thursday night.

Hours later stores and some restaurants were re-opened.

Some friends from Staten Island were headed to a retreat in Virginia when they happened upon the scene.

"As we saw all the trucks we were like, uh oh -- something bad happened," one woman from the group said.

Drivers had no idea what to make of the police tape, the flashing lights, and especially the pickup truck that crashed into the barrier.

"We just rolled up and saw it and asked the cashier inside," said traveler Brian DeLaurentis. "She said someone got shot."

Indeed, that was exactly what happened.

"We're going to need to close off this section of the service area. We have shots fired," state police were heard saying on their radio.

Drivers wanted to know what forced the massive police presence, but authorities wouldn't say.

"I'm glad she was two hours later picking me up because maybe we would've got caught in this. Scary," Linda Howard said.

The incident caused a lot of commotion and concern.

"It's a dangerous job being a police officer, and we thank them for putting their lives on the line every day," said Debra Concepcion of Staten Island.

Earlier reports indicated the arrests of three people found in Pilesgrove, New Jersey near the Delaware Memorial Bridge may have been linked to the Molly Pitcher Service Area incident, but it was later learned that they were not.

Those arrests were the result of a vehicle description given to state troopers by U.S. Marshals in relation to an investigation out of Maryland, authorities said.

The New Jersey State's Attorney General is heading up the investigation into the shooting.

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