Truck Driver Charged With Pointing Gun at Motorist on I-90

Austin, MN (KROC-AM News) - A man from northern Iowa is facing felony charges connected to a recent road rage incident on I-90 in Austin.

According to a criminal complaint filed in Mower County Court, a State Trooper responded to a report of a road rage incident on the morning of June 13. The trooper was told that the driver of a semi-truck had pointed a gun at another motorist in the construction zone near the Elkton exit.

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The court document says the trooper located the semi-truck and initiated a traffic stop on I-90. After ordering 65-year-old Howard Michael Nielsen out of the truck, the trooper asked if he had any weapons. The Forest City, Iowa man stated that he had a knife and a gun on the bed in the truck's sleeper compartment.

The charges say the trooper found a loaded .45 caliber handgun equipped with an 8- to 9-inch-long suppressor inside the truck.

The criminal complaint says the trooper then asked Nielsen if he remembered having issues with another motorist. After initially denying it, Nielsen responded, "maybe they just don't like truckers," and "maybe someone thought I was too close behind him."

The trooper then asked how the other person could have known he had a gun and described the weapon. At that point, the court document says Nielsen admitted that he "might" have shown his gun through the window but denied pointing it at anyone.

The complaint alleges Nielsen then stated that the other motorist was not even doing the speed limit in the construction zone, slowing down to 50 mph and hitting their brakes. When asked if that was why he showed the other driver the gun, Nielsen reportedly responded, "yeah."

The criminal complaint says the victim told the Trooper that the rolling dispute began after the semi-truck came up behind him very fast and began following him very closely as he was traveling through the construction zone with his cruise control set at 65 mph. He also stated that after he saw what appeared to be a blue laser pointer hitting his near he stuck his arm out of the window of his vehicle and "flipped him off."

The victim then described how the driver of the truck pointed a gun directly at his vehicle. He told the trooper he then sped up to put some distance between himself and the truck before calling 911 and exiting the freeway. The driver stated that he was in fear for his life.

Nielsen is charged with two counts of second-degree assault, illegal possession of a suppressor, and a gross misdemeanor count of carrying a pistol without a permit. His conditional bail was set at $10,000, and he was ordered to return to court for a hearing next week.