Del. State Trooper out of the hospital

Delaware State Police have released more information about an incident in Bear where a state trooper was shot.

The 42-year-old trooper, who was not identified by name, is a 19-year veteran of the force. Struck in the upper body, the trooper was protected by his bulletproof vest. He was treated and released from Christiana Hospital with minor injuries Wednesday afternoon.

Hours earlier, the trooper, who was assigned to a special operations team, was at a home in the 1000 block of Powell Court in the Red Lion Chase subdivision in Bear. State Police spokesman Sgt. Paul Shavack said the team was assisting troopers assigned to Delaware Gaming Enforcement in looking for a suspect who was wanted in New Jersey.

Shavack said Nathaniel Greenlee, 21, whose lives at the Powell Court address, was wanted in connection with a July armed robbery of the Caesars Hotel and Casino in Atlantic City.

When troopers knocked on the door and announced they had a search warrant, no one responded. As troopers made their way into the home through the front door, Shavack said, Greenlee’s father, John E. Greenlee, opened fire on the team from a second floor stairway, firing two rounds from a semiautomatic handgun, hitting the injured trooper. 

The 50-year-old Greenlee was taken into custody without incident and the handgun was recovered at the scene. He was charged with Reckless Endangering First Degree and Possession of a Firearm during the Commission of a Felony. He was arraigned and released on $25,000 unsecured bond.

Nathaniel Greenlee, the focus of the search warrant, was not inside the home; He was later found in Pennsylvania and taken into custody by Pennsylvania State Police without incident.