Road Rage Suspect Attacks Driver With Bear Spray
Jul 8, 2021, 4:09 PM | Updated: 7:56 pm
TOOELE, Utah – Tooele deputies were looking for a road rage suspect accused in a bizarre hit and run that left the victim covered in bear spray.
Detectives said they believe they know who the suspect is.
The incident happened on Sunset Road in Tooele Wednesday just before 8 p.m.
One witness told deputies that the man accused of road rage caused a crash then attacked the other driver with a can of bear spray.
The evening started as a quick stop at a drive-thru for a taco but the hungry motorist got more than he bargained for.
Lilly Erickson deputies called her to the scene because her friend was involved in the incident.
“The Sheriff’s deputy called and raced down here to find a crowd of people and my friend’s car completely smashed in in the front and my friend doubled over with people pouring milk and water all over his head.”
#EXCLUSIVE: @TooeleCoSheriff's have tracked down a road-rage driver suspected of attacking a man with a can of bear spray… Story on @KSL5TV at 12:30 and 5. pic.twitter.com/C9iYXPZqRX
— Garna Mejia KSL (@GarnaMejiaKSL) July 8, 2021
Yes, milk.
“Just face swollen. Eyes swollen shut, and bright red burn and bright orange. Looked like spray paint all over his body,” Erickson described.
It wasn’t spray paint. It was bear spray.
Witnesses told Erickson that a driver in a tan Toyota Tundra swerved in front of her friend and slammed on the brakes.
“Literally pulled in front of him and stopped. It hit him really hard,” Erickson said.
The enraged driver dashed to her friend’s side door with a can in his hand.
“It’s like a grenade, pulled the grenade top off of an orange can of bear spray which isn’t the stream kind, it’s the fogger kind. And just stood there and fogged him,” said Erickson.
Bear spray stained the inside of the road rage victim’s car. (KSL TV)
She said the suspect turned around and left without saying a word. “He just tossed it in his truck, got in, and drove away.”
Lily thinks her friend pulled out in front of the other driver at the restaurant and that’s what triggered the attack.
She said, “The neighbors were afraid. This is crazy our kids were in the front yard playing.”
It’s why Erickson would like to see deputies track down the angry driver. “It would almost have been better for me if they had yelled. You would’ve understood at least what they were upset about but it was so crazy, just so cold.”
Deputies said none of the witnesses saw the license plate. They believe the rear end of the tan truck was damaged.
Call the Tooele County Sheriff’s Office at 435-882-5600 if you have any information.
