U.S. Rep. Josh Gottheimer wants to prevent would-be killers from renting “terror trucks” and other vehicles that could be used in deadly attacks, such as the rampage in Lower Manhattan two years ago in which eight people were killed, including a 32-year-old New Jersey man.

The bi-partisan legislation would ask federal authorities to identify “red flags” of possible terrorists and then share that information with car rental companies.

“They represent a new weapon of mass destruction,” Gottheimer, D-5th Dist., said at an event in New Milford, referring to rented trucks used in terrorist attacks to mow down bystanders here and in Europe.

“Terrorists shouldn’t be able to rent terror trucks,” he said. “We commit ourselves to take these next steps.”

The legislation is named the Darren Drake Act, named after the New Milford man who died when a truck jumped onto a riverfront path in New York City, plowing into pedestrians and bicyclists in 2017.

“You don’t get better,” Jimmy Drake told reporters, referring to the loss of his son, which he called “a living nightmare.”

“(But) Darren would be very, very proud,” he said. “If Darren knew that because of his sacrifice that people would live, he would be jumping up and down.”

The Department of Homeland Security and the Transportation Security Administration would be tasked with creating the system and sharing the information with rental companies, Gottheimer said.

The congressman said there “were flags raised” against the terrorist who is accused of killing Drake and seven others in the 2017 attack that could have possibly prevented the attack if the legislation was in place. But he didn’t provide any details of the warning signs.

Sayfullo Saipov, a Paterson man, was in the deadly Halloween rampage. His trial is scheduled for April of next year.

Darren Drake graduated from Rutgers in 2007 with a degree in political science. He earned a master’s from Fairleigh Dickinson University and was working toward a second master’s degree at Stevens Institute of Technology.

Matt Arco may be reached at marco@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @MatthewArco or Facebook.

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