Diomedes Valenzuela was a member of the Irvington Police Department until 2002, officials said. Watch video
CLIFTON -- The man who prompted the issue of an Amber Alert Tuesday after allegedly stabbing his daughter's mother and stealing the 3-year-old girl is a former Irvington police officer, local officials confirmed Wednesday.
Diomedes Valenzuela, 47, of New York, was a police officer in Irvington until March of 2002, township spokeswoman Stephanie Bush-Baskette confirmed. She said she could not comment on the circumstances of his split from the department.
According to Star-Ledger reports at the time, Valenzuela was suspended after his November 2001 arrest of a taxi driver. Assault and misconduct charges initially filed against Valenzuela in connection with the arrest were dropped, the reports say. But, he was found guilty of filing false reports about the incident, which a judge at the time said was in an effort to cover up an unauthorized side job he was holding as a security guard for a towing company, they said.
WATCH: Police rescue 3-year-old girl, arrest father accused of stabbing mom
In 2003, at his sentencing, Valenzuela was stripped of his badge and banned from public employment for life, reports say.
It is unclear how long he had served on the force prior to the incident.
N.J. State Police Tuesday said they arrested Valenzuela on the Garden State Parkway in Clifton after he allegedly stabbed a 31-year-old woman in a Bronx, N.Y. apartment multiple times, and fled to New Jersey with their daughter.
The woman was transported to a hospital, and the girl was found unharmed, police said.
Jessica Mazzola may be reached at jmazzola@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @JessMazzola. Find NJ.com on Facebook.