Bend man charged in alleged road rage incident
Other driver says he pulled gun
BEND, Ore. (KTVZ) -- A 43-year-old Bend man was cited Tuesday on menacing and another charge, accused of pointing a handgun or replica at another driver during an alleged road rage incident last week in northeast Bend.
Police responded around 12:45 p.m. last Thursday to the area of Highway 97 and Empire Avenue for a report of a road rage incident, Sgt. Wes Murphy said.
The victim, a 20-year-old Bend resident, said another driver pointed a handgun at him, then headed south on Highway 97, Murphy said. He said he didn't know who the other driver was, but was able to provide a description of the man and vehicle.
The alleged victim said the incident began when he was following another driver going about 15 mph in a school zone on Purcell Boulevard, Murphy said. He said he knew school was not in session, so he honked his horn at the other driver.
He said the other driver first pulled over, then began following him after he passed. He said he abruptly applied his brakes in an attempt to make the other driver back off, but the other driver pulled up next to him when Empire turned from a single lane into two lanes.
The driver said at that point, the other driver pointed what he believed to be a handgun at him through the driver's open window, then made a comment before driving off. Officers searched the area but were unable to find the other driver.
An officer with the Bend police Problem Oriented Policing (POP) Team investigated and was able to identify the other driver as Jeremiah Walker Nisbet, Murphy said. The officer was granted a search warrant for Nisbet, his vehicle and his home.
On Tuesday, officers from the POP Team and school resource officers assigned to patrol during the COVID-19 school shutdown stopped Nisbet and searched his vehicle, which matched the alleged victim's description, and later his home.
Officres found an airsoft gun, resembling a pistol, in the vehicle's center console, Murphy said. It resembled the description given by the other driver in the recent incident.
Officers also recovered other pistols and firearms at Nisbet's home and in his other vehicle located there, the sergeant said. One of the pistols found in the other vehicle also resembled the description of the one displayed during the alleged road rage incident.
Nisbet was issued a citation in lieu of custody on charges of menacing and unlawful use of a weapon, Webb said.
