An Ellicott City man is facing criminal charges after Howard County police say he shot a BB gun at a speed camera van and broke a window.
Abraham Naveed Quraishi, 20, of the 2700 block of Water Wheel Court, is denying the charges, claiming in the charging documents that he threw a key out his car window and was not targeting the van.
Quraishi faces second-degree assault, malicious destruction of property in connection with the Dec. 11 incident on Rogers Avenue near Hollifield Station Elementary School in Ellicott City. He also faces one charge of driving with a suspended license, according to the documents, as police said he did not have an active driver's license at the time.
Police said a civilian employee was inside the van when, shortly before 10 a.m., something struck the vehicle and broke the left rear window. Police said they believe the projectile was a small object.
The operator, who was not injured, photographed the car, a 2008 Toyota Corolla, police said.
The car was registered to a relative of Quraishi, according to the charging documents, although police said they discovered through a list of traffic citations that Quraishi regularly drove the car.
Police visited Quraishi at his Ellicott City home, where he denied he shot the van with a BB gun and told police he threw a key out the window, according to the charging documents.
Police issued a search warrant for his house and found six BB guns, ammunition and cartridges, as well as a speed camera citation, according to the documents.
Police also searched the Toyota and found BB pellets and a box for the BB gun, according to the documents. Police said Quraishi did not change his story after the search of the car.
An arrest warrant was issued for Quraishi last week, and he turned himself in on Jan. 7, police said.
This incident is the fourth report of vandalism of the county's speed camera equipment since the program was launched three years ago.
"We want people to know that we take these cases very seriously and will file criminal charges," said Police Chief Gary Gardner. "Everyone is entitled to their own opinion about the speed camera program, but we cannot overlook the significant damage to equipment and potential injury to our van operators."