Chief Walter Laurencio

Chief Walter Laurencio was born in Cuba and came to the United States at the age of 3. His family briefly lived in Queens, NY before they settled in Union City. Chief Laurencio attended Washington School and Jefferson Annex Grammar schools before graduating from Union Hill High School in 1994. He holds a Bachelor’s Degree from The College of NJ and a Master’s Degree from Seton Hall University.

Chief Laurencio started his law enforcement career with the Hudson County Sheriff’s Office before being hired by the Union City Police Department in 1999. He is a graduate of Essex County Police Academy class 99-3. As a Police Officer and Detective, he served in the Community Policing Unit, Narcotics Task Force, and Patrol Divisions. He has been a member of the Emergency Services Unit (ESU) since its inception in 2004. In 2008, Chief Laurencio was promoted to Sergeant. In 2013, he was promoted to Lieutenant and then promoted to Chief in 2020. He has served as the Chief of Staff for Chief Brian Barrett (Ret.), Chief Richard Molinari (Ret.) Chief Nichelle Luster, and Chief Anthony Facchini. He has also served as the Patrol Division Commander, Investigative Division Commander, and in his current role as the Professional Standards Division Commander.

Command Staff

Captains

Captain Michael Bergbauer

Captain Michael J. Bergbauer – a second-generation police officer (father – retired Inspector Michael H. Bergbauer) who was raised in Union City, and joined the department in 2004 after serving as a Hudson County Sheriff’s Officer and Corrections Officer.

Achieved B.A. in Political Science from New Jersey City University (2009) & M.A. from Seton Hall University’s Police Graduate Program – Human Resource Training & Development (2020). Captain Bergbauer achieved the rank of Sergeant in 2011, Lieutenant in 2016 & Captain in 2021. Captain Bergbauer has proudly served in the patrol division on nights for the majority of his career. Currently, Captain Bergbauer is in charge of the Community Policing Unit and Morning Tour. He is married with three children.

Captain Omar Hernandez

Captain Omar Hernandez has served as a Union City Police officer since 1996. He was part of the Union City Narcotics Task both as a detective and as a commander. In 2008 Captain Hernandez was promoted to the rank of Sergeant, in 2013 he was promoted to the rank of Lieutenant, and in 2022 he was promoted to the rank of Captain. He was also a founding member of the Union City Emergency Services Unit, a unit which he has also led for the last ten years.

Since 2014 Captain Hernandez has been the commander of the Training Division which is responsible for training all of the officers employed by the City of Union City. He is a certified instructor in conducted energy devices, baton, sub-machine gun, police service rifle, a state-certified firearms instructor, and a certified ICAT/ABLE instructor. Captain Omar Hernandez also has a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science from Rutgers University, New Brunswick, NJ.