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Police release name of fatally stabbed Del. officer

Police have released the name of a New Castle County Police Officer stabbed to death early this morning during a struggle with the suspect in a disorderly conduct complaint.

Police have released the name of a New Castle County Police Officer stabbed to death early this morning during a struggle with the suspect in a disorderly conduct complaint.

Police say Sgt. Joseph L. Szczerba, 44, of Wilmington, and an 18-year veteran of the New Castle County Police Department, was called to the Penn Acres community of Wilmington Manor, near New Castle, around midnight.

There, Szczerba attempted to take a suspect into custody near Roosevelt Avenue and Fithian Drive, police say.

Police say the suspect, whose name is being withheld pending charges, pulled out a knife and stabbed Szczerba to death in the normally quiet suburban community.

Szczerba was taken to the Christiana Hospital where he was pronounced dead. Officers lined the streets as his body was escorted in a procession to the medical examiners office.

The suspect is currently in police custody.

New Castle Co. Executive Paul G. Clark called the killing 'senseless,' in a statement on the incident and said he had met with the officer's family.

"My deepest sympathies go out to the family, to his fellow officers, and to all who knew him," Clark said. "We mourn the loss of this brave and dedicated public servant, and I ask everyone to pray for him and his loved ones."