MANCHESTER, NH – Shane Lafreniere, 22, of Jaffrey, was charged with criminal threatening in a road rage incident reported to police on March 29.
Police say Tyler Merrill, 22, of Pembroke, was operating his vehicle eastbound on the Amoskeag Bridge at about 12:30 p.m. with passengers in the car, including his two young children, when he claimed to be “cut off” by a 2007 Subaru Impreza, operated by a lone male subject later identified as Lafreniere.
Merrill said Lafreniere cut him off before “slamming on his brakes,” which caused Merrill to take immediate action to avoid a crash. Both vehicles exited toward Canal Street and continued southerly on Canal Street.
Merrill claimed Lafreniere pulled alongside of his vehicle and displayed a black handgun through his window. Merrill told police he was in fear for his safety, so he flagged down an officer working a construction detail at Elm and Granite streets.
Lafreniere was contacted soon after the incident took place. He agreed to meet detectives at police headquarters. Detectives spoke to him and decided there was enough probable cause to make the arrest for criminal threatening, a felony. They were unable to locate a handgun, but they did locate a knife inside of his vehicle. He was released on $1,000 personal recognizance. He will appear in 9th Circuit Court-Manchester on May 4, 2015.
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