Photo: Facebook / Easton Police Department
The crime allegedly wasn't politically motivated.
By Isaac Serna-Diez — Written on Jun 20, 2022
Police in Easton, Massachusetts, are investigating after a man drove his 2015 Volkswagon Jetta into a Donald Trump memorabilia store called “New England For Trump” while blasting Nirvana’s “Smells Like Teen Spirit” on the radio.
The Easton Police Department released a statement regarding the incident that occurred last Thursday, June 16, just after 5 p.m. and obtained video footage of the crash.
A video shows the man's car abruptly crashing through the Trump-themed store.
Police say that crash was not politically motivated and that the man claimed to hear “voices in his head.”
46-year-old Sean Flaherty from Raynham, Massachusetts was the man behind the wheel that crashed into the Trump memorabilia storefront.
"It had nothing to do with Trump or any political anything," Flaherty’s friend, who asked not to be identified, said to WCVB. "It was just an unfortunate coincidence."
While his friends claim that the stunt had nothing to do with a hatred for former President Trump, Flaherty does have anti-Trump stickers on his rear bumper.
"He wasn't in the right sense of mind mentally," the friend said. "He's been going through a lot over the past year."
Flaherty was transported to Good Samaritan Medical Center with non-life-threatening injuries.
One employee who had been inside the store at the time was not injured during the crash.
"Just before he did that, there was a little boy with his mother shopping right in that spot," said Keith Lambert, the store's owner. "The clerk was about to go to the bathroom and he would've gotten hit."
In the video of the crash, you can hear the loud crashing of the car barreling into the store, the employee standing to the left near the counter, and also the sound of Nirvana’s 1991 classic “Smells Like Teen Spirit.”
"Thank God nobody got hurt, that's all I can say," Lambert also said.
FOX Business spoke to store employee Karla Kelley, who claimed there was no provocation or altercation that cause Flaherty to ram his car "off of the street and into the building."
When asked if the driver said anything after he crashed into the store, she claimed he said: "the voices in his head told him to do it."
She added that she hopes Flaherty gets charged for what he did, and that "there's a chance" the store could be targeted again "but there's a chance of lot of things happening."
"So I'm not concerned," Kelley said. "I'm not worried. Take it as it comes."
Easton Police Department stated that Flaherty has been charged with reckless operation of a motor vehicle and malicious destruction of property, while additional charges may follow.
“A request was also made to the Registry of Motor Vehicles to revoke Flaherty’s license as an immediate threat,” they added.
Despite the claims that the incident was not politically motivated, Trump supporters are taking the crash personally, claiming that it was because of his political ideations.
"Just because you have different opinions, different ideologies, there's no reason for this type of thing," said customer Iris Dyer to CBS News.
"It's a hate crime, and someone could have been killed; it's not fair," said customer Beth Olsen.
According to Kelley, the store was able to shift displays around and add temporary ones in order to stay open for the busy father’s day weekend as repairs to the storefront continue.
Isaac Serna-Diez is an Assistant Editor who focuses on entertainment and news, social justice, and politics. Since graduating from Rutgers University, he spends most of his free time gaming or playing a fictional sport. Keep up with his rants about current events on his Twitter.