Son Of Korean Immigrants Leaves Mark As Port Authority Cop

NEWARK, NJ — Marvin Cha has made a career of saving lives, including at Newark Airport and the George Washington Bridge. And for Cha, a sergeant with the Port Authority Police Department, his South Korean heritage is just one of many tools he uses to keep his community safe.

The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey recently gave a well-deserved shout out to Cha, a 21-year veteran of the force who dreamed of being a cop from an early age. Read the full story here.

Cha, the son of Korean immigrants, said he was inspired to be an officer by an uncle who served as a local police chief in South Korea.

“I’ve always wanted to give back to my community, and learned at an early age that policing is a great opportunity to make a positive difference every day,” the tenacious officer said.

“In today’s current climate, my role as a Korean American police sergeant is more important than ever,” Cha continued.

“The violence and hate towards individuals based on race needs to come to an end,” he urged. “We need to be more accepting of all humans and be a better society.”

Cha served as a volunteer firefighter in Leonia and a police dispatcher with several municipalities before joining the Port Authority Police Department in 2013. Since then, he’s made his mark as a valuable member of the force.

According to the PAPD, his accomplishments include:

• Five months ago, while patrolling the George Washington Bridge, Cha, his partner and a Port Authority tunnel and bridge agent responded to a report of an unresponsive man at the bridge’s toll booths in cardiac arrest. They used CPR and a defibrillator to restart his heart.
• In 2019, Cha and two other PAPD officers helped to avert an attempted suicide at the George Washington Bridge.
• In 2016, he was awarded the Police Medical Duty Medal for reviving a person at Newark Liberty International Airport.

In addition to his police duties, Cha serves as a Korean interpreter for the PAPD and is serving as a trustee on the board of the PAPD Asian Jade Society. He also is a member of the Port Authority Asian American Association and a Sergeant at Arms for the Korean American Law Enforcement Association.

“We salute Sgt. Cha not only for his commitment to the public he serves every day, but to the community he represents with immense pride and dedication,” said Port Authority Police Department Superintendent Edward Cetnar.

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