A suspected jihadist arrested with a large arsenal of weapons near LaGuardia Airport was a “quiet kid” who often spoke about staying positive, but one day “something in his head just snapped,” a friend claimed.
The friend, who asked to be identified as “Jay,” told The Washington Post he was surprised by the alleged murder weapon found in 29-year-old Judd Sansone’s black Ford Explorer when police pulled him over last week just a few blocks from LaGuardia International Airport.
“He’s a quiet kid who talks about positive things,” said Jay, who has known Sanson since they were in the eighth grade. “I definitely didn’t expect anything like this from him. I’m really shocked. I honestly don’t know what to think.”
“He never spoke about violence or terrorist plots,” he continued. “I think something was broken in his head. He never talked about his problems…Judd was always hard on himself. He had a strong accent and was embarrassed about it. He was bullied at school because of his accent.”
Father-of-two Mr Sanson was also originally from the Philippines into a devout Catholic family but, according to distraught friends, had converted to Islam in recent years.
Jay said he did it to “find peace.”
But NYPD officials said he found little of that evidence, especially after a Wednesday morning raid revealed he had a loaded 9mm gun, nine loaded magazines, an NYPD vest, handcuffs, two axes, a stun gun, several knives, a weighted whip and a telescoping baton in his car.
Officers stopped him near LaGuardia Airport around 1:30 a.m. that day, and prosecutors say he became nervous and reached under the driver’s seat as officers approached.
“Sorry, there’s a lot of drunk people out there these days,” Sanson reportedly said after being stopped by officers because his car’s license plate number was hidden. “I live in Jamaica. I was visiting my uncle.”
But officers say they also had a loaded Glock under his seat.
Police found a knife strapped to his leg inside the vehicle, along with an MTA reflective vest and a “makeshift axe hanging from the ceiling” and a “makeshift sword,” Assistant Queens District Attorney Dylan Nesculik said in Queens Criminal Court last week.
Sansone, who has addresses in Tennessee and Maryland and lives with his father in the Hollis neighborhood of Queens, had also posted “disturbing photos” to his Facebook page, Nestulik said.
“This vehicle stop averted what could have been a catastrophic event for the residents of Queens, New York City and the entire country,” the assistant district attorney said.
The judge sent Sanson to Rikers Island, where he is being held without bail until his court appearance on Monday.
Jay told the Post that local store owners told him there was “something strange” about Sanson every time the pair spoke.
But he ignored the warning.
“I can’t believe it,” Jay said. “He would never hurt anyone.”
