The three people arrested in New Jersey at the entrance to the Holland Tunnel Tuesday with a huge hoard of weapons and ammo have told police that they were on a mission to rescue a teenage girl trapped in a Brooklyn drug den.
The trio, from Pennsylvania, were apparently pulled over for driving with a broken windshield, but their vehicle wasn’t exactly inconspicuous among all of those cars lined up at the tolls — and the “pro-gun decals” and “skull on its gas cap” might have been a bit of a giveaway.
Cops found an arsenal that included a loaded AR-15 and shotgun, five handguns, 2,000 rounds of ammunition, knives, body armor, night goggles, and a bulletproof helmet in the truck. One gun clip had ’Murica written on it; another said “United We Stand.” Another box inside the truck read, “Shoot Your Local Heroin Dealer.” Police also confiscated marijuana, prescription drugs, and other drug paraphernalia from the SUV.
The three people — John Cramsey, Dean Smith, and Kimberly Arendt — told cops they were headed to Brooklyn to save a 16-year-old who was being held against her will by heroin abusers. The girl was “scared to death and wanted to go home to her folks,” per a Facebook message Cramsey posted to Smith before they embarked on their operation. According to the Daily News, Arendt, who worked as a youth counselor, knew the teen from camp and had received a text from her asking for help. The girl apparently said she woke up Monday next to the dead body of someone who overdosed on heroin. Cramsey, the truck owner and proprietor of the gun range it advertises, is a committed anti-drug advocate who has made it his “crusade” to directly help out addicted kids after his 20-year-old daughter died from a heroin overdose earlier this year. Cramsey had apparently started making arrangements for the teenage girl to enter rehab after they pulled her from the drug hideaway.
Cramsey posted this on Facebook, along with some pictures, before the group reached the Holland Tunnel:
I’m currently 11 miles outside of Brooklyn New York and going to a hotel to extract a 16 year old girl who went up there to Party with a few friends. One of those friends she went up there with will not be returning . This young lady from Wilkes Barre is scared and wants to come home. Last night she woke to find her friends body next to her in the same bed were her friend died of another heroin overdose. The Child named Janaee Patterson and she is from the Wilkes Barre area. A Facebook message to the Mother and the Brother with no response yet. I’m bringing her out of NY today and anybody else in that hotel that wants to go home too . Lyn Baker I am with your friend Kimberly Anne Walker and we we are now 9 miles out . She accepted your friend request. I will keep you posted as soon as I got some news.
Hey everybody !
Who remembers the Beastie Boys ….
NO ….SLEEP ….TILL BROOKLYN !
ENOUGH is ENOUGH !
Coming to a Town near YOU SOON !
Cops reached out to the teen, who told police that she was not being held hostage. She did, however, ask for help, and police took her into custody, according to CBS News. But the mother of the teen told the Allentown Morning Call that her daughter didn’t do heroin. “It was her friend,” she said.
It’s unclear exactly why the trio brought this arsenal on their mission. Some defenders of the crew — and there are many — said they believe they think Cramsey, as the owner of a gun shop, had just forgotten to unload the stash before setting out for Brooklyn.
All three are facing weapons-related charges and are currently being held in a New Jersey prison on $75,000 bail. All three pleaded not guilty to the charges. Attorneys for the accused tried to get their bail reduced Wednesday. Cramsey’s attorney argued the guns were registered and that the search wasn’t justified. But the judge didn’t budge.
New Jersey has tougher gun laws than Pennsylvania, and driving with a loaded gun isn’t permitted. “This isn’t in PA, it’s in New Jersey,” the prosecutor said in court. “There are laws.”
