UPDATE 6/24:
On June 21, at approximately 6:43 p.M., a man tried to open the front passenger door of a vehicle before getting on top of the hood and banging on the windshield.
Using downtown cameras, police were able to locate the victim's vehicle and observe the man's vehicle behind the victim. They were then able to backtrack and trace the vehicle and the occupants that had parked downtown prior to the incident.
This gave investigators ample video footage of the suspects in the downtown area and provide images of what they look like and what they were wearing.
Police say they immediately received multiple tips through Southwest Florida Crime Stoppers that provided the vital leads.
Businesses downtown were willing to provide an additional video that captured the incident.
Kyle Barret, 26, is facing charges of Burglary Conveyance Unarmed.
Fort Myers Police are still searching for two suspects who attacked a woman at a Fort Myers traffic light.
One man jumped out of a vehicle and attempted to assault a citizen while she sat in her car at the light. It’s a crime that is becoming more frequent here in Southwest Florida- road rage. A similar incident took place Monday night at the intersection of Fowler and Second Street in downtown Fort Myers.
“I’m just trying to think, I have never investigated a case in my 20 years of road rage.”
Two men, pictured downtown, are wanted by police after attempting to assault a woman. A man in a blue tank top and hat exited the passenger side of a 4-door hatchback. While at the stoplight, the man tried to pull the woman from her car.
“People are getting out and they’re angry- the slightest thing makes them angry," says Dr. David Thomas, Veteran Police Officer and Professor of Forensic Studies at Florida Gulf Coast University. "Where before, they had patience and they just don’t have it anymore.”
Charges in an incident such as this can go anywhere, as Thomas says, from simple battery to even murder.
“Burglary of the vehicle because you reached into the vehicle to assault someone or you open the door to gain entry of the vehicle," he said. "If you damage the vehicle then we’re talking about criminal mischief as a process. Then it can go from something as simple as assault all the way to murder just depending on what transpires during the incident so there’s a lot.”
Thankfully, the situation did not escalate any further. Doctor Thomas tells us the driver would have been within her rights to carry a gun in her car for protection, so long as it’s secured in a holster or glove box.
“Anybody can have a gun, except for a convicted felon," said Dr. Thomas. "Odds on is that you would say that a lot of people who drive cars in the state of Florida actually possess a firearm in their car at the time they’re driving.”
Meanwhile, police say there were other vehicles in the intersection that witnessed the incident and hope they come forward.
“Are we going to find civility again?" says Dr. Thomas. "Somewhere we’ve lost that and so I think, hopefully, within the next couple of years as people get out and we start to interact more that we’ll find our way back. But right now, it’s all bets are off.”
Those with any information are asked to call Fort Myers Police or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-780-TIPS.
