Off-duty cop assaulted in Queen Village

A PHILADELPHIA police captain suffered a broken nose during a bizarre off-duty encounter with another man in Queen Village over the weekend.

The incident unfolded on a narrow stretch of Howard Street near Queen about 2 a.m. Saturday.

Ray Evers, the commander of the Police Department's Criminal Intelligence Unit, was talking with his girlfriend, who had just had $15,000 worth of jewelry stolen from her car, said Lt. John Stanford, a police spokesman.

Stanford said Evers claimed that a passer-by approached and began to film the couple with his cellphone, leading Evers to yell at the man.

"At some point, the gap closed between them, and the guy cold-cocked [Evers]. He punched him right in the face," Stanford said.

"The guy takes off running, and the captain goes after him," he said.

"At one point, the guy turns around and punches him again, breaking his nose."

The entire incident was recorded by a nearby camera, and is being reviewed by Internal Affairs.

Stanford said it is standard practice for Internal Affairs to investigate any incident involving an off-duty cop.

Evers, 45, was treated at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital for his injuries.

The assailant is described in police records as a thin, bearded man in his 40s who wore a dark jacket and red shirt.

Stanford said the man has a lawyer, and is expected to surrender to police to face criminal charges.

This is not the first time Evers was assaulted while off-duty.

In June 2012, Evers said he was attacked by several people inside the Princeton, a bar in Avalon, N.J.

Authorities in the Shore town later said surveillance footage from the bar and interviews with employees didn't confirm his version of the events.

An investigator wrote in his report that Evers questioned his sense of police "brotherhood."

Stanford said Evers was not available yesterday for comment.