Man charged with attempting to murder Evesham Township police officers
EVESHAM TOWNSHIP, N.J. (CBS) -- A Burlington County man is in jail Sunday night accused of trying to run over two police officers with his car. He was charged with attempted murder.
Surveillance video showed Evesham Township police officers taking cover as an out-of-control driver in a white car started ramming into one of their cruisers.
"He backed up and repeatedly drove forward, crashing into the canine vehicle, and he struck the vehicle four times," Evesham Township Police Chief Walt Miller said.
Miller says the dangerous situation unfolded around 1 a.m. Sunday.
Officers were investigating a car crash on Taunton Lake Road when they say 33-year-old Marc Ferraiolo drove by at twice the speed limit.
Police say they tried to stop him, but he refused to pull over. They later confronted Ferraiolo at his house, but say he wouldn't come out of his car.
"He threw the vehicle in reverse and maneuvered the vehicle to try to run over two of the officers that were standing along the side of the driveway. Fortunately, the officers were able to jump out of the way, not be struck by the vehicle, but became very close to striking them," Miller said.
One neighbor says the suspect hit her car as he was driving away, breaking the wheel off its axle and damaging the mirror.
"The cops, they had their guns drawn and all that, and my husband and I were scared to death because our house is right here," the neighbor said.
The crash left Ferriolo's car totaled. He was arrested and charged with attempted murder.
Police say he's been arrested before and may have held a grudge against officers.
"Himself and his wife, Ruth Patton, earlier in the evening devised a plan that they were going to contact Evesham Police Department officers for the purpose of killing two officers," Miller said.
While the neighborhood is shaken, neither the officers, nor the dog in the canine car, were seriously hurt.
"I'm very thankful for the police that were brave to deal with this problem," the neighbor said.
Ferriolo is currently locked up at the Burlington County Jail. His wife, Patton, was also arrested and charged with making terroristic threats against police during the confrontation.