A Florida man allegedly boarded an Amtrak practice in New Jersey carrying ammunition, a number of handguns and an AR-15 fashion rifle, New Jersey authorities stated.
Jeffrey O. Kennerk, 34, of Fort Lauderdale, was indicted on a number of expenses, together with aggravated assault, possession of a weapon for illegal objective and inflicting or risking widespread damage or injury, the New Jersey Lawyer Basic’s Workplace and the Division of Legal Justice stated in a press launch on Wednesday.
“This defendant allegedly hauled a small arsenal of lethal weapons and ammunition by means of busy transit stations, and on a practice full of passengers,” New Jersey’s Lawyer Basic Matthew J. Platkin stated in an announcement.
Jeffrey O. Kennerk, 34, of Fort Lauderdale, Florida, is seen on this picture launched by the Broward County Sheriff’s Workplace in New Jersey on Wednesday, April 16, 2025.
Broward County Sheriff’s Workplace
Transit police at Penn Station in Newark, New Jersey, seen an unattended black-and-white-zebra-pattern bag on Jan. 3, in line with officers. A Ok-9 staff cleared the bag for the presence of explosives, then the officers opened it and located inside a case for a Glock handgun, in line with a press release, which cites two complaints and an indictment.
Contained in the case was a handgun with a loaded 18-round journal, officers stated. Additionally within the bag had been an AR-style journal with rifle rounds and a “plastic bag containing a shirt and two containers labeled 9 mm bullets; 4 containers of .223 caliber bullets.”
“A zipped secondary compartment within the suitcase contained a pink duffle bag containing a black Zastava Arms AK-47 fashion rifle with one spherical loaded within the chamber and a number of loaded magazines,” the A.G.’s press launch stated.
After legislation enforcement discovered the bag, at about 2:55 p.m., they reviewed digicam footage from the station, which appeared to point out a person, whom police allege was Kennerk, who was carrying two suitcases, together with the one with the zebra sample.
“The topic walked away, allegedly, abandoning the zebra print suitcase, and went to the Amtrak ticket window,” officers stated. “It was discovered that the topic was boarding an Amtrak practice sure for Virginia and the subsequent cease can be the Trenton Transit Heart.”
An indication for the Trenton Transit Heart is seen in a screengrab of a video offered by ABC Information station WPVI.
WPVI
Two officers boarded that practice because it arrived in Trenton, officers stated. After they approached Kennerk, he allegedly confirmed them a legitimate Amtrak ticket — though it was for one more practice. Cops in Trenton had been notified that Newark officers had been trying to find Kennerk. He was arrested earlier than he may board his ticketed practice, officers stated.
“The collective actions of legislation enforcement eradicated the potential carnage that might have been brought on by the weapons concerned on this case,” New Jersey Transit Police Chief Christopher Trucillo stated in an announcement.
As Kennerk was arrested, police searched his second suitcase and located a number of different weapons, officers stated. He was allegedly carrying in that “darkish maroon coloured” suitcase an AR-15-style rifle, together with “a number of caches of ammunitions, a number of prolonged magazines, and a number of handguns,” officers stated.
“The indictment of this particular person underscores the extreme risk posed by those that amass unlawful weapons with blatant disregard for public security,” stated Col. Patrick J. Callahan, superintendent of the New Jersey State Police, in an announcement.
Deputy Lawyer Basic Karen Bracizewsk, of New Jersey’s Division of Legal Justice, is predicted to guide the prosecution towards Kennerk, officers stated.
ABC Information’ Jessica Gorman and Victoria Arancio contributed to this report.
