DUBOIS – A Massachusetts man is facing charges following an incident of road rage.
According to an affidavit of probable cause filed with District Judge Patrick Ford’s office June 21, Benjamin Robert Reed, 26, 49 Adams St., Haverhill, Mass., is charged by the DuBois City police with terroristic threats, assault, stalking and two counts each of disorderly conduct and harassment.
According to the affidavit, on June 20, police were dispatched for a report of a man threatening a woman with a shovel. The victim was waiting at a nearby fire hall.
The officers met with the victim who told them that she was driving home with her young child in the vehicle. She approached the intersection of Spring Avenue and Brooks Alley and saw a blue pick-up truck with a Massachusetts license plate turn left onto Brooks Alley, then back onto Spring Avenue and was going to make a left onto Spring Avenue again. The victim said she was trying to make a right as the other driver was trying to make a left and the road was “tight” for both vehicles to pass. The victim said she saw the driver of the truck was yelling at her, but couldn’t make out what he was saying because her window was up.
The victim said she drove down the alley and pulled into her home, where her husband was standing and briefly told her husband what had happened, but she saw the driver of the truck walking down the alley. The victim said she was afraid for her safety, so she drove away, hoping the man would leave the area.
When the victim returned home, she backed into her driveway, got out of the vehicle and looked down the alley. The victim said she saw the man walk out of some bushes at the end of the alley. The victim told her husband the man was coming back and got back into her vehicle. The victim told police that the man allegedly had a shovel in his hand. The victim then drove to the fire hall to wait for police.
The offices spoke to the victim’s husband, who told them that he saw the man allegedly carrying a shovel and that the man was allegedly yelling that he was going to smash out his wife’s window and “split her head open.” The victim’s husband also showed police a shovel laying near the intersection of Brooks Alley and Spring Avenue, where the man was last seen.
The officers were able to locate the pick-up about a block away and spoke with the driver, later identified as Reed.
Reed allegedly told police that his truck was hit by the victim and she shouted an expletive at him. Reed allegedly told police he got out of his truck and yelled at the victim, but denied having a shovel. Reed then showed the officers the damage to his vehicle. The officers noted in the affidavit that there were small scratches on the door, which had a thin layer of dust on them, indicating the scratches were not fresh. There was also no damage to the victim’s vehicle to support Reed’s claim.
The victim was able to identify Reed as the man who came after her.