(NEWARK, NJ) — A Florida man allegedly boarded an Amtrak train in New Jersey carrying ammunition, multiple handguns and an AR-15 style rifle, New Jersey authorities said.
Jeffrey O. Kennerk, 34, of Fort Lauderdale, was indicted on several charges, including aggravated assault, possession of a weapon for unlawful purpose and causing or risking widespread injury or damage, the New Jersey Attorney General’s Office and the Division of Criminal Justice said in a press release on Wednesday.
“This defendant allegedly hauled a small arsenal of deadly weapons and ammunition through busy transit stations, and on a train filled with passengers,” New Jersey’s Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin said in a statement.
Transit police at Penn Station in Newark, New Jersey, noticed an unattended black-and-white-zebra-pattern bag on Jan. 3, according to officials. A K-9 team cleared the bag for the presence of explosives, then the officers opened it and found inside a case for a Glock handgun, according to a press release, which cites two complaints and an indictment.
Inside the case was a handgun with a loaded 18-round magazine, officials said. Also in the bag were an AR-style magazine with rifle rounds and a “plastic bag containing a shirt and two boxes labeled 9 mm bullets; four boxes of .223 caliber bullets.”
“A zipped secondary compartment in the suitcase contained a pink duffle bag containing a black Zastava Arms AK-47 style rifle with one round loaded in the chamber and multiple loaded magazines,” the A.G.’s press release said.
After law enforcement found the bag, at about 2:55 p.m., they reviewed camera footage from the station, which appeared to show a man, whom police allege was Kennerk, who was carrying two suitcases, including the one with the zebra pattern.
“The subject walked away, allegedly, leaving behind the zebra print suitcase, and went to the Amtrak ticket window,” officials said. “It was learned that the subject was boarding an Amtrak train bound for Virginia and the next stop would be the Trenton Transit Center.”
Two officers boarded that train as it arrived in Trenton, officials said. When they approached Kennerk, he allegedly showed them a valid Amtrak ticket — although it was for another train. Police officers in Trenton had been notified that Newark officials were searching for Kennerk. He was arrested before he could board his ticketed train, officials said.
“The collective actions of law enforcement eliminated the possible carnage that could have been caused by the weapons involved in this case,” New Jersey Transit Police Chief Christopher Trucillo said in a statement.
As Kennerk was arrested, police searched his second suitcase and found multiple other weapons, officials said. He was allegedly carrying in that “dark maroon colored” suitcase an AR-15-style rifle, along with “multiple caches of ammunitions, multiple extended magazines, and multiple handguns,” officials said.
“The indictment of this individual underscores the severe threat posed by those who amass illegal weapons with blatant disregard for public safety,” said Col. Patrick J. Callahan, superintendent of the New Jersey State Police, in a statement.
Deputy Attorney General Karen Bracizewsk, of New Jersey’s Division of Criminal Justice, is expected to lead the prosecution against Kennerk, officials said.
ABC News’ Jessica Gorman and Victoria Arancio contributed to this report.
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