A driver involved in a police chase down the New Jersey Turnpike late Friday had brandished a handgun at another motorist earlier in the day, police said Saturday.
The nearly 90-minute effort to stop the driver of a white Chrysler Town and Country started around 4:15 p.m. in the southbound lanes of I-287 near Morris Township. New Jersey State Police said a caller reported being involved in a road rage incident where the driver exited the Chrysler and pointed a gun at the caller.
Multiple state troopers responded to the area and observed the minivan traveling east onto I-78. In the area of Bridgewater Township, the NJSP said troopers performed a traffic stop and instructed the driver to exit the vehicle. They said the driver, from North Carolina, stepped out for several minutes before jumping back into the minivan and fleeing.
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Troopers started their pursuit of the 62-year-old motorist until he ultimately reached the New Jersey Turnpike. At one point in the chase, the NJSP said the driver struck a State Police marked vehicle on State Highway 18.
Roughly a dozen law enforcement vehicles in pursuit of the driver finally stopped him shortly before 6 p.m. at milepost 52 in Mansfield Township.
The NJSP said troopers arrested the driver after physically removing him from the minivan. A female passenger was also taken into custody, but later was not charged after investigators determined she "was an unwilling participant" in the chase.
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Arresting officers recovered a 9mm handgun from the Chrysler.
The North Carolina man faces charges of possession of a firearm without a permit, possession of a firearm for unlawful purpose, aggravated assault, aggravated assault against a trooper, resisting arrest, eluding arrest and obstruction of justice.
