Teen who attacked NJ officers last year was ‘radicalized online,’ followed ISIS

A Virginia teen has been sentenced to 18 years in prison for an attack last year in Burlington County, New Jersey, that left four police officers injured. On the afternoon of March 21, 2025, Fasihullah Safar hit a vehicle, causing it to overturn, before repeatedly driving his car into a Florence police patrol vehicle on Route 130 near Station Road. When the 17-year-old’s car became inoperable and backup arrived, he charged officers with a knife and stabbed and slashed four of them before being subdued. Safar said in court in January that he had been radicalized online and began following the Islamic State in the months leading up to the attack. When questioned in court, he said his goal was to kill one of the officers to promote terrorism. (photo credit: Burlington County Prosecutor's Office)