Two inmates and four corrections officers were injured at the Somerset County Jail last Friday, Aug. 24, when several inmates allegedly assaulted a fellow prisoner.
Sheriff Frank J. Provenzano said officers observed the accused inmates assaulting another inmate about 10 p.m. As they intervened, at least two of those inmates tried to interfere with the officers and assaulted one of them, according to the sheriff.
Other injuries sustained by the officers may have been received while trying to overcome resistance offered by the inmates, the sheriff said.
The inmate victim was identified as Julio Freza, 38, of Elizabeth, who was being held at the county jail on robbery charges from Franklin Township. He was treated at Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital in New Brunswick and returned to the jail on Sunday.
The injured corrections officers included Sgt. Sonny Shea and Cpl. Ruben Crespo, who were treated at Somerset Medical Center and released. Officers Michael Miller and Daniel Hribik were injured but did not seek treatment.
Accused in the assault were James Ford, 36, of Phillipsburg, and Elijah Ford, 23, of Freemansburg, Pa., both held at the county jail on homicide charges from Bound Brook.
Elijah Ford was treated at Somerset Medical Center and returned to the jail on Saturday.
Also accused in the attack were Alex Ortega, 20, of Plainfield, held on homicide charges from Franklin, and Nicholas Soto, 20, of Manville, serving a 364-day sentence for theft from Somerville. The matter is under investigation by the Somerset County Sheriff’s Office.

