'Gun enthusiasts' drove monster truck full of rifles, body armor to New York to save hostage

Three people were arrested on the New Jersey side of New York's Holland Tunnel on Tuesday morning after they were pulled over for a cracked windshield and discovered to be in possession of loaded guns, knives, 2,000 rounds of ammunition, and body armor. However, authorities ruled out terrorism as a possible motive; an official told The Daily Beast that the trio was "on their way to rescue a female friend who they believed was being held hostage in Queens after doing heroin."

The female friend had allegedly overdosed in Brooklyn and called her friends to save her after she woke up next to a dead woman. Apparently corroborating the story, one box of ammo said "shoot your local heroin dealer."

The two men in their 50s and a woman in her 20s had driven to New York from Pennsylvania in a bright green modified Dodge that was apparently named after a gun range, "Higher Ground Tactical." Officers who spoke to NBC called the trio "gun enthusiasts." DNAInfo reported that one of the guns had "Merica" written on it.

The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up

The owner of Higher Ground Tactical, John Cramsey, reportedly posted pictures of himself on Facebook with a similar truck, although it is unclear if the truck is owned by the gun range or not. Cramsey's daughter died of a heroin overdose in February, also according to Facebook. The gun range declined to comment to the press.