Police have arrested a man after he crashed his car into the front gate of Jennifer Aniston’s home in Los Angeles on Monday.
The incident occurred around 12:20 p.m. in the Bel-Air neighbourhood and the Friends star was home at the time of the crash, according to officer Jeff Lee of the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD).
Private security guards apprehended the driver and held him until police arrived.
“He used his vehicle to ram a gate to the residence,” Lee said, adding that the motorist was driving a grey Chrysler PT Cruiser.
Jimmy Wayne Carwyle, 48, was booked for felony vandalism and has not been formally charged in the case, according to ABC News. The L.A. County District Attorney’s Office is expected to decide which charges to file after the LAPD submits its case in the next few days.
According to police, Carwyle’s booking was delayed because he was taken to the hospital after complaining of back pain from hitting the gate. Investigators said the crash appeared to be intentional, but the motive was not confirmed.
A general view of Jennifer Aniston’s gate outside her home on May 5, 2025 in Bel Air, California.
MEGA/GC Images
Before his arrest, Carwyle repeatedly posted about Aniston on social media, NBC News uncovered. (Some screenshots from Facebook are below.)
“I’ve been writing, since the Beginning Jennifer Joanna Aniston Carwyle, with you,” Carwyle posted on a Jennifer Aniston fan page on Facebook in March 2024.
A screenshot of Jimmy Carwyle’s post on Facebook.
Facebook / Jimmy Carwyle
“I LOVE YOU Emanuel Jennifer Joanna Aniston Carwyle!” he wrote, sharing an advertisement of Aniston for Lolavie Haircare products.
A screenshot of Jimmy Carwyle’s post on Facebook.
Facebook / Jimmy Carwyle
Carwyle’s longtime childhood friend Steve Rhea told NBC News that he had left Mississippi in September 2024 to live out of his car at a Walmart in the Los Angeles suburb of Burbank.
“We just hope he gets the help he needs,” Rhea told the outlet. “I hope there’s some way to fix him, but I don’t know.”
This incident comes months after Aniston was the victim of an alleged swatting prank, which refers to bogus 911 calls made to businesses or homes, often of public figures, that can prompt a large emergency presence and potentially create a dangerous situation.
Around 12:30 a.m. on Saturday, Sept. 21, someone called the LAPD and requested that police do a wellness check on “their friends they were worried about.”
The caller gave police Aniston’s address but did not name the 56-year-old actor. When officers arrived at the home, they were greeted by security and Aniston reportedly came out to assure police she was fine.
Aniston purchased the mid-century mansion on a 3.4-acre lot for about US$21 million in 2012, according to reporting by Architectural Digest.
— With files from The Associated Press