Stolen Police SUV Slams Into Hoboken Ferry Terminal
HOBOKEN, N.J. (CBSNewYork/AP) -- A person jumped into a police K-9 SUV and drove it into the waiting room doors at the Hoboken rail terminal, according to NJ TRANSIT.
The suspect was arrested after the incident, which took place around 8 a.m. Monday.
Police said the the person stole the NJ TRANSIT police vehicle that was sitting near the terminal, drove in and made a hard right aiming for the waiting area and kept trying to crash through metal bars there several times, CBS2's Meg Baker reported.
"It was a huge bang noise. Then we heard it again and I was like 'Wait a minute what's going on?'" said Evelyn Soto who was working inside the terminal at the New York Waterways ticket booth. "I just wanted to leave. I didn't know what was going on. It's crazy."
Commuter Damian Sauter is thankful she missed the mayhem.
"Definitely scary, kind of shocking," she said.
"You just don't know what is going to happen you just have to always keep track of what's going on around you," said a New York Waterways employee who arrived to work just as the scene was being cleared.
George, who was in the terminal at the time of the incident, feared it was terrorism.
"I think it's deliberate because look at everything else going on in the world," he said.
But police believe it may have been a crime of opportunity, 1010 WINS' Al Jones reported. Detectives are trying to determine the intent of the suspect, whose name was not released, NJ TRANSIT spokeswoman Nancy Snyder said.
No injuries were reported, but the crash caused significant damage to the waiting room doors.
Train service was not impacted, however the ticket windows are closed and the on-board ticket purchasing surcharge has been waived.
A temporary waiting room and restroom have been made available on Track 8.
The SUV has since been removed from the scene.
The driver was in custody Monday night, and the FBI had turned the case back over to NJ TRANSIT, which may be an indication the incident was not terror related.
(© Copyright 2018 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)
