South FL Man With 'Small Arsenal' Arrested At NJ Amtrak Station

TRENTON, NJ — A Fort Lauderdale man with a "small arsenal" of weapons on public transit in New Jersey has been indicted on aggravated assault and several gun charges, state Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin's office announced Wednesday.

Prosecutors accused Jeffrey O. Kennerk, 34, of bringing multiple assault weapons, including four silencers and booby-trapped guns, to two Amtrak train stations.

The allegations stem from a Jan. 3 incident at Newark Penn Station. Around 3 p.m., prosecutors said a state transit officer noticed a black and white zebra print suitcase that was left unattended near the entrance to the Newark subway.

A K9 unit then cleared the bag for explosives, but prosecutors said a Glock handgun case containing a Girsan Regard MC handgun with a fully loaded 18-round magazine was found in the suitcase.

Also inside were an AR style magazine loaded with 0.223 rifle rounds, a plastic bag containing a shirt, two boxes labeled 9-millimeter bullets and four boxes of 0.223-caliber bullets, prosecutors said.

In one of the suitcase compartments, prosecutors said they found a pink duffle bag holding a black Zastava Arms AK-47 style rifle with one round loaded in the chamber and multiple loaded magazines.

Authorities reviewed camera footage, which prosecutors said showed Kennerk carrying two suitcases, one of which had zebra print.

Kennerk was accused of leaving the suitcase and heading to the Amtrak ticket window. Sometime during the incident, he was accused of boarding a Virginia-bound Amtrak train that had a stop at the Trenton Transit Center.

When officers got on the train in Trenton, prosecutors said Kennerk claimed to have boarded the wrong train and showed the officers a valid ticket for a different one.

The officers told Kennerk to wait for the next train, but before it could arrive, prosecutors said the officers were notified about the Newark incident. Kennerk was arrested before he could board another train, prosecutors said.

Officers searched Kennerk's suitcase and found multiple weapons, including: an AR-15 style rifle that was separated into the lower and upper receiver, multiple caches of ammunitions, multiple extended magazines and multiple handguns, prosecutors said.

A separate rifle that was loaded with 0.300 AAC Blackout ammunition was removed from a bag, prosecutors said.

Multiple handkerchiefs were found around the rifle's trigger guard, and while an officer was attempting to remove one of the handkerchiefs, prosecutors said the rifle fired without the trigger being engaged. They added this indicated the rifle was booby-trapped.

Officers recovered 10 “K” baffle cups that are used with silencers, four silencers and hollow point ammunition in both 9-millimeter and 0.22 long rifle calibers.

“This defendant allegedly hauled a small arsenal of deadly weapons and ammunition through busy transit stations and on a train filled with passengers,” Platkin said in a news release. “He allegedly left a suitcase containing assorted weapons and ammunition – including an assault rifle – in the concourse of Newark Penn Station, where anyone could have been harmed by them. If not for the outstanding police work done in this matter, we can only imagine where this defendant and these weapons would have ended up.”

Kennerk was indicted on the following charges, per Platkin's office:

• Aggravated assault
• Possession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose
• Four counts of unlawful possession of a weapon
• Three counts of unlawful possession of an assault firearm
• Certain persons not to have weapons

Additionally, prosecutors said Kennerk was charged with two counts of unlawful possession of a large capacity ammunition magazine, unlawful possession of hollow nose ammunition, unlawful possession of a silencer, endangering another person and causing or risking widespread injury or damage.

Kennerk faces five to 10 years in state prison with a fine of up to $150,000 for the former charges and up to 18 months in state prison and a fine of up to $10,000 for the latter.