Armed ‘Mad Max’ arrested in Barstow desert
In the dystopian action classic “Mad Max,” the lead character — clad in leather and armed with a sawed-off shotgun — sets out to avenge the death of his wife and child who were killed by a violent motorcycle gang.
It’s unclear if vengeance was on the mind of a rider on a quad bike who authorities say was armed with a sawedoff shotgun and dressed as Mad Max when he was pulled over late Thursday in the Barstow desert.
Jack Lee Ernest caught the attention of a San Bernardino County sheriff’s deputy about 11 p.m. as he rode on Old Highway 58.
The deputy tried to stop him near Leona Road, but Ernest attempted to ride away, the Sheriff’s Department said. Sheriff ’s officials said Ernest “behaved so suspiciously he was detained.”
As the deputy searched the 39-year-old Barstow resident, he found brass knuckles and a sawed-off shotgun. Both are illegal, authorities said. The ammunition was “tactically attached” to the shotgun for easy access, deputies said. The deputy found two large knives positioned in a similar fashion, authorities said.
“Ernest claimed he fashioned himself as ‘Mad Max,’ ” the Sheriff ’s Department said. Authorities didn’t care about his fashion sense, but he was arrested on suspicion of possessing illegal weapons.
Ernest is being held in lieu of $30,000 bail .