Police in Trenton on high alert following NYPD shooting

TRENTON, N.J. (WPVI) -- Trenton Police are keenly aware of the assassination of two New York City police officers on Saturday, but after an ambush on police here last month they've already been on heightened alert for weeks.

That's ratcheted up even more because the police director says there is a credible threat against cops here that's currently being investigated.

Trenton Police Director Ernie Parrey explains, "We have received some intelligence that indicated that there may be some potential problems out in the western sector for us."

Parrey won't go into detail but says investigators are looking into a threat against Trenton Police officers.

They are now trying to identify the individual who made it.

In the meantime an order requiring all patrols to wear body armor has been reissued and cops have been told when they answer calls to assess the situation and call for backup.

"That's why the additional personnel, kinda to be an extra set of eyes and ears to see what's going on," Parrey said.

Trenton Police are already on heightened alert. Back on November 13, a gunman unexpectedly opened fire on two Trenton Police officers as they responded to a call on Wilson Street, leaving at least three bullet holes in the driver's side windshield of their police vehicle.

The suspect was killed in the ensuing gun battle; the two officers were not seriously injured. But officers are more vigilant than ever.

This weekend New Jersey's statewide police union president put out a warning to its 33,000 members telling officers they need to be vigilant about possible ambushes or people looking for confrontations.

Pat Colligan, NJ PBA President, advised police to, "Move their cars around. If they're used to going to 1 or 2 or 3 of the same restaurants in the town that they work in, change it up."

As the police brutality issue explodes nationwide, Trenton Police continue meeting regularly with community members and the clergy. They were criticized by some back in October when a mural of Michael Brown, the teen shot and killed by police in Missouri, was removed from the business district after the department felt it sent the wrong message.

Parrey says last month's ambush of his men and this weekend's assassination of two New York City cops is a frightening reminder of the danger officers face.

He says, "They're there to protect, they're there to serve, absolutely. But they're also there to get home safely."

And Parrey says if you have an interaction with police, it's important to follow the officer's instructions so the situation doesn't escalate.