Boy Sentenced After Trying To Kill NJ Police Officer, Assaulting 2 Others

FLORENCE, NJ — A 17-year-old boy from Alexandria, Virginia, was sentenced on Thursday after he tried to kill a Florence Township police officer to promote terrorism, the Burlington County Prosecutor's Office said.

Fasihullah Safar was sentenced to 18 years in jail after he pleaded guilty as part of an agreement to charges of first-degree attempted murder, second-degree aggravated assault, third-degree aggravated assault on a law enforcement officer, and third-degree theft of a motor vehicle.

On March 21, 2025, at around 4:30 p.m., Safar intentionally drove into a Florence officer's police vehicle multiple times while the officer was responding to a report of a vehicle that flipped over.

Safar's car was inoperable on Route 130 near Station Road after the collisions.

When other law enforcement arrived, he charged them while swinging a knife and was able to stab the chest area of one of the officers multiple times.

The officer, however, was wearing a protective vest that prevented more severe injuries, authorities said.

Safar would not surrender and had to be subdued.

An officer was left with multiple injuries to his face and a cut to his torso. Two others were hurt with undisclosed injuries.

All three were treated and released from the hospital.

Safar suffered a cut to one of his fingers that was caused by his own knife, officials said.

Detectives later found that he also caused the first crash that the initial officer responded to.

In January, Safar told a court during a plea hearing that he started to follow ISIS in the months before the crash.

He also showed his intent to join the group on social media, the Prosecutor's Office said, and professed that becoming a terrorist would allow him to defend his religion.

RELATED COVERAGE: Boy Claimed Terrorist Motives After Stabbing Cop In Burlington Co.: Prosecutor

During the same plea hearing, Safar said he yelled "Allahu akbar" during the confrontation, and said that he was trying to promote terrorism by killing an officer.

"Allahu akbar" is an Arabic phrase used by Muslims across the world to praise God in different contexts. Muslims have denounced the phrase's usage as a battle cry in acts of terrorism.

In the days prior to the stabbing, Safar trespassed at a Fredericksburg High School and fled when a school resource officer approached him. He also stole a vehicle, police said.

The FBI's field office in Washington notified Fredericksburg officials that he was wanted. It is unclear why they were searching for him or if they knew of his connections to terroristic ideas.

Schools in the area were closed on March 21 out of an abundance of caution, and he was arrested later that day in New Jersey.

Safar's case was elevated from juvenile court in September 2025 after the Prosecutor's Office filed a petition to waive him up to treatment as an adult.

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