Deputies: Man pointed, fired gun in fit of road rage
Jan 30, 2013
Vireak Soy (Spartanburg Co. Detention Center)
SPARTANBURG, SC A Spartanburg man was arrested Monday after authorities said he pointed his gun at another driver in a case of road rage.
Vireak Soy, 30, was charged with pointing and presenting a firearm.
FOX Carolina spoke with the victim, Angel Rodriguez, who said he doesn't know why he was targeted. Rodriguez said Monday he was just driving down the road when he looked in his mirror and noticed a driver was tailgating and even following him.
"He was following pretty close, I slowed down a bit thinking maybe he'd go around me, which he didn't," said Rodriguez.
Eventually Rodriguez said he sped up hoping to lose the driver, only to have the suspect pull beside his vehicle. Rodriguez said the driver started yelling and making obscene gestures.
"I ignored it for a while and I look back over and I notice he's still next to me," said Rodriguez. "So when I turn and look again, I look and see him point a pistol right at my face."
That's when Rodriguez called 911.
"I've been in situations that were kind of crazy, that tops the charts," said Rodriguez.
Coincidentally, Rodriguez said while he was telling his story to the law enforcement officer at a nearby Spinx, the suspect, Soy, pulled back onto the road.
Rodriguez pointed the suspect out to the deputy, who attempted to follow the suspect, but Rodriguez said the suspect had turned into a gas station and the officer wasn't able to see him and continued down the road.
Rodriguez said that's when he called dispatch and got into his own car to follow the man.
"I wasn't going to sit back and allow it to just fly," said Rodriguez.
He said with dispatch on the phone he followed Soy until he parked at a residence. That's when he said that Soy got out of his car, waved his gun and fired three shots into the air.
Deputies say when they arrived at the home, the suspect denied pointing a gun and firing shots. However, they said they found evidence suggesting otherwise.
"We found some shell casings in the driveway," said Lt. Tony Ivey with the Spartanburg Sheriff's Office. "We presented everything to a judge and he issued a warrant for arrest on pointing and presenting a firearm."
Soy was later released from jail, according to detention center records.
Vireak Soy, 30, was charged with pointing and presenting a firearm.
FOX Carolina spoke with the victim, Angel Rodriguez, who said he doesn't know why he was targeted. Rodriguez said Monday he was just driving down the road when he looked in his mirror and noticed a driver was tailgating and even following him.
"He was following pretty close, I slowed down a bit thinking maybe he'd go around me, which he didn't," said Rodriguez.
Eventually Rodriguez said he sped up hoping to lose the driver, only to have the suspect pull beside his vehicle. Rodriguez said the driver started yelling and making obscene gestures.
"I ignored it for a while and I look back over and I notice he's still next to me," said Rodriguez. "So when I turn and look again, I look and see him point a pistol right at my face."
That's when Rodriguez called 911.
"I've been in situations that were kind of crazy, that tops the charts," said Rodriguez.
Coincidentally, Rodriguez said while he was telling his story to the law enforcement officer at a nearby Spinx, the suspect, Soy, pulled back onto the road.
Rodriguez pointed the suspect out to the deputy, who attempted to follow the suspect, but Rodriguez said the suspect had turned into a gas station and the officer wasn't able to see him and continued down the road.
Rodriguez said that's when he called dispatch and got into his own car to follow the man.
"I wasn't going to sit back and allow it to just fly," said Rodriguez.
He said with dispatch on the phone he followed Soy until he parked at a residence. That's when he said that Soy got out of his car, waved his gun and fired three shots into the air.
Deputies say when they arrived at the home, the suspect denied pointing a gun and firing shots. However, they said they found evidence suggesting otherwise.
"We found some shell casings in the driveway," said Lt. Tony Ivey with the Spartanburg Sheriff's Office. "We presented everything to a judge and he issued a warrant for arrest on pointing and presenting a firearm."
Soy was later released from jail, according to detention center records.
