Three Napped Going into New York City Armed to the Teeth: Police Call Them 'Vigilantes'

The "vigilantes" had 2000 rounds of ammo.

By Keri Blakinger, et al
Cops arrested three “self-styled vigilantes” with loaded handguns, rifles, 2,000 rounds of ammunition, and a gun clip marked “America,” as the men were about to drive into the Holland Tunnel on the way to Manhattan Tuesday morning, police said.

The men — stopped at 7:40 a.m., during rush hour — were toting bullet-resistant vests with “Police” emblazoned on them, police and sources said.

The trio was flagged at the New Jersey toll plaza when a Port Authority Police officer detected a cracked windshield on the boldly colored red, black and green Dodge, police said.

The officer, John Basil, peered into a window and saw a loaded gun magazine. He ordered everyone out of the car. When the driver, Dean Smith, 53, of Pennsylvania got out of the pickup, Basil spotted a loaded .45-cal semiautomatic on the front seat, police said.


"The driver was sitting on a loaded .45 so that opened the door to everything else," said Joseph Pentangelo, a Port Authority police spokesman.

A search turned up five pistols, an AR-15 assault rifle, a shotgun, four knives, 10 loaded clips of ammunition, and a military-grade helmet. Most of the guns were “locked and loaded,” police and sources said.

[...]

Some of the guns were found hidden in a passenger compartment. One of the clips had “United We Stand” written on it, and another, “America.”

Police also found a marijuana pipe in the car and three prescription drug pills, and believe all three suspects are heavy heroin users, sources said.

Authorities said they don’t believe the men are connected to terrorism, and NYPD Counter-Terrorism tweeted Tuesday that they are monitoring the situation.

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