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.
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.
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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.
