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Video: Man Climbs Atop Uber Car During Midtown Manhattan Road Rage Altercation

Claire Lampen

Published Jan 24, 2019

Modified Jan 24, 2019

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Courtesy of the NYPD

Claire Lampen

Published Jan 24, 2019

Modified Jan 24, 2019

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A cyclist allegedly assaulted an Uber driver and damaged his vehicle on Friday, clambering onto the car's roof during an apparent road rage incident in midtown.

According to the NYPD, the suspect—as seen in the video below—used his bike lock to smash the Uber's windshield and rear window. When the driver opened the door to escape the shower of shards, the suspect allegedly beat him with the lock, whacking him in the head and on the back.

The driver got away from the cyclist, at which point the cyclist allegedly turned his attention back to the car. The NYPD says "the individual screamed aloud and stomped over the vehicle's roof and hood before he jumped off and fled the scene" on a black and green bike. All of this took place around 1:20 p.m. on Friday afternoon, near the intersection of East 40th Street and Fifth Avenue.

Surely, something must have occurred to spark such fury: A bike lane blocked by a bunch of parked cars, perhaps, or used for passenger pick-up? An NYPD spokesperson could not provide further information about what sparked the assault. NBC NY reports that all of this started when the cyclist began "banging on the Uber car's window for no apparent reason." Which is to say, road rage.

The driver, a 23-year-old man, was taken to a nearby hospital for treatment of his head wound, and has since been released. The two passengers who were riding with him at the time were physically unharmed, but probably shaken.

Anyone with information in regard to this incident is asked to call the NYPD's Crime Stoppers Hotline at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477) or for Spanish, 1-888-57-PISTA (74782). The public can also submit their tips by logging onto the CrimeStoppers website at WWW.NYPDCRIMESTOPPERS.COM, on Twitter @NYPDTips or by texting their tips to 274637 (CRIMES) then enter TIP577. All calls are strictly confidential.

Tagged

assault

cyclist

nypd

road rage

uber

Claire Lampen

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