A truck driver was kicked in the face by an attempted carjacker in Florida on Wednesday night.
The incident happened on February 18th in Pasco County, Florida on Interstate 75 just before 10 p.m.
According to Fox 13 Tampa Bay, 43-year-old Dale Patrick Ferris stopped his black GMC in the southbound lanes of I-75 without any lights on, causing a crash with a woman driving a Subaru. By that point, Ferris had already exited his vehicle and walked into the path of an oncoming Hyundai driven by a 42-year-old woman. The woman braked to avoid Ferris, who then pulled out a handgun and climbed onto the hood of the vehicle. “A passing vehicle soon distracted Ferris and allowed the Hyundai driver to speed away successfully,” a police report stated.
A semi truck driven by a 62-year old trucker then stopped at the scene and exited his truck to try to help, but Ferris quickly climbed into the rig and attempted to steal it. Ferris was unable to release the air brakes or put the rig in gear. The tucker and another witness then tried to stop Ferris, but he proceeded to kick both men in the face and chest from the driver’s seat of the rig.
Police soon arrived and took Ferris into custody. Investigators found evidence that Ferris had fired his handgun, including empty casing and bullet strikes in the roadway. Ferris is now facing several charges, including aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, carjacking with firearm, carjacking, improper exhibition of a firearm, and discharging a firearm in public.
No serious injuries were reported asa result of the incident.