BALLSTON SPA, NY — State Police arrested a Ballston Spa man on multiple felony charges after he allegedly wore body armor and carried what appeared to be a rifle outside a county public safety building.
Andrew M. Provencher, 37, of Ballston Spa, was charged with criminal possession of a weapon in the third degree, a class D felony; assault in the second degree, a class D felony; unlawful wearing of a body vest, a class E felony; resisting arrest, a class A misdemeanor; and obstructing governmental administration, a class A misdemeanor.
Law enforcement responded at about 12:27 p.m. on Jan. 26, 2026, to a report of a suspicious person outside the Saratoga County Public Safety Building on County Farm Road.
Provencher allegedly was wearing a ballistic vest and carrying what appeared to be a rifle when he approached an individual unknown to him in the parking lot and became confrontational.
The victim got away from Provencher and notified a law enforcement official.
Provencher got in his vehicle and fled the location while notification was being made.
Troopers located and stopped him on Malta Avenue in Ballston Spa.
Provencher exited the vehicle still wearing the ballistic vest and was taken into custody after a short period of resistance during which a trooper sustained minor injuries.
Investigators seized two knives stored in Provencher’s ballistic vest and an imitation Tippman M4 Carbine assault rifle loaded and capable of discharging metal pellets from his vehicle.
Provencher was arrested and processed on Jan. 27, 2026, at State Police Saratoga with assistance from the Saratoga County Sheriff’s Office.
He was arraigned at Ballston Spa Village Court and remanded to the Saratoga County Correctional Facility in lieu of $25,000 cash, $50,000 bond, or a $250,000 partially secured bond.
