An off-duty Newark police lieutenant fatally shot his estranged wife in Jefferson late Sunday and another man was seriously injured, authorities said.

The Morris County Prosecutor's Office confirmed Monday that Christine Formisano, 37, was killed and a 40-year-old man was shot multiple times and seriously wounded Sunday night on Mirror Place.

Christine Formisano was found dead on the front porch steps of a home down the street, the Prosecutor's Office said.

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John Formisano, a 24-year veteran of the Police Department, surrendered during a motor vehicle stop at 1:30 a.m. on Foxcroft Drive in Livingston, 30 miles from the crime scene, Livingston police said. He was turned over to the Morris County Prosecutor's Office. The gun believed to have been used in the shooting was found in the car.

Newark police suspended Formisano from duty without pay after it learned of the shooting, department sources said.

“Lt. Formisano’s colleagues in our police division were shocked by the news of the shooting and we recognize it this is a tragedy beyond comprehension for all involved," Newark Public Safety Director Anthony F. Ambrose said in a statement.

A residential portion of Mirror Place remained closed Monday morning for the ongoing crime scene investigation. Public records show Formisano purchased the home a decade ago.

Morris County Prosecutor's Office spokesman Peter DiGennaro said police responded to the home at 11:21 p.m. Sunday for a report of shots fired.

“I thought they were fireworks,” said a resident named Gianna, who declined to give her last name. Gianna said a friend who was listening to a police scanner notified her of the shots fired near her home. She then told her mother.

“It’s horrifying. It’s scary. It’s not anything you expect,” said Liliana Morgan, who has lived in the Oak Ridge section of Jefferson for 21 years.

That was the general reaction by neighbors.

“This is a sleepy town,” said one resident who declined to give his name. “Stuff like this doesn’t occur here.”

Another resident who declined to give her name said she received a call from a neighbor at about 12:30 a.m. Monday to tell her about the alleged shooter.

“He seemed normal. Don’t they always,” she said.

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DiGennaro said the couple's two children were not injured but declined to identify their current location.

Jefferson Mayor Eric Wilsusen said the children were being cared for by members of their immediate family.

"This is a highly unusual event for our community," said Wilsusen, who visited the scene Monday morning. "Our thoughts and prayers go out to the family of the victim as well as for the young children who were apparently home at the time. Many in the community have reached out to my office offering assistance to the family."

Civil Service Commission minutes show Formisano was suspended by his department for "care of property and neglect of duty" in 2000. The 35-day suspension was later reduced to five days.

A law enforcement source familiar with the case said Formisano is being held for evaluation at a St. Clare’s Hospital system facility. He was charged with murder, attempted murder, unlawful weapon possession and endangering the welfare of a child.

Anyone with information about the shooting is asked to contact the Morris County Prosecutor’s Office Major Crimes Unit at 973-285-6200 or the Jefferson Police Department at 973-697-1300.

William Westhoven: 973-917-9242; wwesthoven@dailyrecord.com.