New Jersey authorities say a man drove into a house, then a police station. He emerged pumping his hands in the air while playing 'Welcome to the Jungle.'
- A New Jersey man drove his car into a house and then a police station.
- He narrowly missed hitting a police officer, who had just stepped out of the room, officials said.
A New Jersey man is behind bars after he drove his car into a local police department's headquarters.
While blasting Guns N' Roses' "Welcome to the Jungle," the 34-year-old man exited his vehicle into the police squad room with his hands in the air victoriously, as if he had just scored a touchdown, video of the incident shows.
Well, the jungle didn't bring John Hargreaves down, but the police did.
The Belvidere man was arrested and now faces a total of 10 charges from his rampage behind the wheel, according to a press release from James Pfeiffer, the Warren County prosecutor.
Before Hargreaves drove into the Independence Township police headquarters, he first crashed "into the garage door of a private residence in an attempt to scare or harass the homeowner," whom Hargreaves knew, according to the prosecutor's press release. He was charged with burglary, criminal mischief, possession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose, and harassment, according to the press release.
Then, Hargreaves "drove to the nearest police station and intentionally drove his vehicle through the building causing significant damage," per the press release. "The entire vehicle came to a final resting point in the squad room."
Hargreaves narrowly missed hitting Officer Khilian Bernard, who had stepped away from his desk and was in his sergeant's office when Hargreaves' car careened into the squad room.
"We're talking probably a matter of seconds where he could have killed a police officer," Pfeiffer told local affiliate station WFMZ-TV. "Just by the grace of God, he was not there at the time."
A spokesperson for the police department did not immediately respond to Insider's request for comment on Saturday. It was not immediately clear whether Hargreaves had an attorney.
For crashing into the headquarters, Hargreaves was charged with terrorism, causing widespread damage, aggravated assault, burglary, possession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose, and criminal mischief, per the press release.
Hargreaves was previously sentenced to two years of probation in 2021 after he pleaded guilty to stalking and criminal trespassing, court records show.