SOMERVILLE, N.J. (Somerset County) — A Basking Ridge man has been sentenced to 30 years in state prison, with 27 years of parole ineligibility, for striking a police officer with his vehicle and fleeing while armed with illegal weapons, authorities said.
On Jan. 28, 2026, Superior Court Judge Peter J. Tober sentenced Brian A. Niziolek, 39, following his Dec. 11, 2025 conviction on multiple charges, including second-degree aggravated assault, second-degree eluding, second-degree burglary while armed with a deadly weapon and unlawful possession of an assault firearm and handgun.
Under the sentence, Niziolek must serve 27 years before becoming eligible for parole.
Prosecutors said the charges stem from a June 29, 2023 incident in Manville after police received a report that Niziolek was driving a stolen vehicle. Manville Police Lt. John Crater and Officer John Chismar located the vehicle on Pope Street and attempted to detain Niziolek.
Authorities said Niziolek turned his vehicle toward Crater, accelerated and struck the lieutenant in the arm and hip, propelling him into a police vehicle. Crater and Chismar then pursued Niziolek as he drove through Manville at speeds exceeding 60 mph and traveled the wrong way down a one-way street, officials said.
The chase ended when Niziolek crashed into another vehicle and then into a house on North Fifth Avenue, according to prosecutors.
Niziolek then fled on foot and broke through a basement window of a multi-unit apartment building on Brooks Boulevard, where he attempted to hide in a crawl space, authorities said. Officers from Manville, Bridgewater and Hillsborough, along with a Somerset County Sheriff’s Office K-9 unit, surrounded the building and located him in the basement. Crater removed him from the crawl space and placed him under arrest.
Police later searched the vehicle and recovered what authorities described as an illegal MAC-11-style 9mm semi-automatic assault firearm, a high-capacity magazine containing 30 rounds of ammunition and a bulletproof vest.
In addition to the prison sentence, Niziolek faces separate charges stemming from an incident during his trial. On Jan. 12, 2026, he was charged with third-degree attempted witness retaliation and harassment, a petty disorderly persons offense, after allegedly spitting on an attorney in the courtroom on Dec. 4, 2025, whom he mistakenly believed to be a state witness.
Authorities said Niziolek later told a sheriff’s officer he was “having a bad day” and admitted he had made a mistake. That charge remains pending in Somerset County Superior Court.
