JERSEY CITY — Authorities arrested a city police officer, accusing him of intentionally driving his car into a suspect who was on foot.

Sgt. John Ransom was arrested Friday, five months after surveillance cameras captured his car striking a suspect twice.

His arrest makes it a half dozen current and former city officers who have been charged in less than a year with corruption or using excessive force.

In the Ransom case, the video was obtained by Univision 41 and shared with New Jersey 101.5 in September, when officials acknowledged an investigating into the incident.

On Friday, Hudson County Prosecutor Esther Suarez said Ransom had been charged with fourth-degree assault by auto causing serious bodily injury. New Jersey 101.5 did know whether Ranson had an attorney who could speak on his behalf.

Investigators say Ranson had attempted to stop a drug suspect about 7 p.m. Aug. 6. After the suspect ran into Audubon Park, Ranson tailed him in his car, driving into him twice.

The suspect, identified as Shiron Cooper, was hospitalized with scrapes, cuts and bruises to his head and torso. He also had a facial fracture.

Cooper was sentenced in September to two years of probation after pleading guilty to drug possession.

Ransom is the latest police officer in the state's second largest city to face criminal charges.

Four police officers have been indicted on charges that include aggravated assault and attempted murder after they sped after a suspect while firing their weapons. They eventually pulled an innocent burning ban — who investigators say the officers mistook for the suspect — from a car wreck only to stomp and drag his injured body.

The city's former police chief, meanwhile, admitted this month to stealing $31,713 by filing fraudulent timesheets with the Jersey City Housing Authority. Philip Zacche, who retired in June with a half-million-dollar payout and a $143,000 annual pension, faces sentencing before a federal judge in April.

“Officers who abuse their power and break the law will be held accountable for their actions,” Suarez said Friday. “The Office of the Hudson County Prosecutor will continue to vigorously investigate and root out police misconduct and wrongdoing.”

Sergio Bichao is deputy digital editor at New Jersey 101.5. Send him news tips: Call 609-359-5348 or email sergio.bichao@townsquaremedia.com.

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