Men charged in alleged road rage attack on I-495 say truck driver struck first

Two men accused of attacking a truck driver in an alleged road rage incident in Bolton Monday say they were actually defending themselves after the other driver struck first.

Brothers-in-law Juan Marin, 28, and Javier Gutierrez Vargas, 23, are both facing charges in the incident, which happened on Interstate 495 southbound shortly before 2 p.m. Monday. Massachusetts State Police previously said the tractor-trailer driver was struck with a hammer during the altercation, and the suspects allegedly fled the scene in a Volkswagen hatchback. 

According to a report filed in Clinton District Court, officers later found the vehicle at an urgent care facility in Marlborough after Marin, who suffered a head wound in the skirmish, stopped for help. Police said the truck driver — a 28-year-old Maine man — also suffered a “significant head injury” that was not life-threatening. 

“He was trying to hit me with the hammer,” Marin told reporters at the courthouse Tuesday, per NBC10 Boston video. “I don’t hit him with the hammer; he hit me with the hammer.”

Marin and Gutierrez Vargas, both Dracut residents, are each facing two counts of assault and battery with a dangerous weapon and one count of disorderly conduct, State Police said. Online court records indicate both men have pleaded not guilty, and Boston.com has reached out to lawyers for Marin and Gutierrez Vargas seeking comment. 

What happened during the alleged road rage incident?

Marin allegedly told authorities the tractor-trailer was traveling in the left lane and abruptly cut him off as he was driving with his wife and brother-in-law, according to a police statement filed in court. He drove around the truck but “was upset due to the fact that the [tractor-trailer] driver was driving so aggressively,” the report reads. 

Both vehicles pulled over. From there, accounts differ; Marin told police the truck driver got out of the cab with a hammer and began walking over, prompting Marin to grab a beach chair from his trunk as a form of defense, according to the court filing. 

Marin shared a video with NBC10 Boston that appears to show the truck driver gesturing at Marin before the incident. He and Gutierrez Vargas both allege the truck driver struck first.

“Marin stated that after he was struck by the hammer, he struck the [tractor-trailer] operator multiple times with his fist,” the police report reads. “Marin stated that after finally removing the hammer from the [tractor-trailer] operator, they threw it over the guardrail into the grassy area and left the scene in fear that someone was going to call the police. Marin stated that he did not strike the [tractor-trailer] operator with the hammer.”

Meanwhile, the truck driver told police that the Volkswagen brake-checked him multiple times after he merged into the middle lane, causing the truck’s brakes to lock up, according to the filing. When the truck driver pulled over to check his equipment with a hammer, he reportedly saw the Volkswagen approach. 

According to the report, the truck driver “stated he tried to calm down the three parties” but was allegedly struck after he mentioned calling the police and attempted to return to his truck. The truck driver told police he dropped his hammer in the ensuing scuffle, and one of the men allegedly picked it up and hit him in the back of the head.

Then, he said, the trio fled. 

Altercation captured on video, police say

According to police, the altercation was recorded on the tractor-trailer’s dashboard camera, and a witness also captured the incident on camera. 

The footage allegedly shows Gutierrez Vargas “striking [the truck driver] multiple times with what appears to be a metal folding camping chair and kick[ing] him several times in the head with his foot,” the court document states. 

Further, police said Marin “was observed in video footage first striking [the driver] with what appeared to be a metal folding camping chair several times, hitting him with a closed fist several times to the face/body and hitting him with what appears to be an object consistent with a hammer [the driver] had previously in his possession,” according to the filing. 

The video also allegedly implicates Marin’s wife, Thalia Gutierrez Vargas, who police say struck the truck driver with an unspecified object several times. She will receive a court summons on charges of assault and battery with a dangerous weapon and disorderly conduct, according to the court document. 

Marin and Javier Gutierrez Vargas are due back in court on May 14.