A violent encounter following a minor traffic collision in Attleboro, Massachusetts, has resulted in serious injuries and the arrest of a Rhode Island man. Gladior Kwesiah, 26, from Pawtucket, is facing multiple charges after he allegedly hurled a woman to the ground "head first" after she rear-ended his vehicle, as per NBC Boston.
Police were summoned to the intersection of Rt. 1 and Rt. 1A following several 911 calls around 8:50 a.m. yesterday. Officers arrived to find a 31-year-old woman, approximately 5 feet tall and weighing 110 pounds, in distress, in the roadway, crying and bleeding from her head, NBC Boston reports. Kwesiah was taken into custody and faces a slew of charges including assault and battery with a dangerous weapon causing serious injury, and operating a vehicle without a license.
After what appeared to be an intentional braking maneuver leading to the collision, the victim, identified as Hailea Soares in a WHDH report, sought to document the damage. It was during this time Kwesiah took her phone and subsequently began his assault, “I tried to defend myself and then he picked me up, and that was when the woman got the video of me being thrown to the ground," Soares told WHDH.
Witnesses corroborated the sequence of events, as video evidence showed Kwesiah assaulting Soares after exiting their respective vehicles, one witness claimed to have seen Kwesiah bang on the roof of Soares’ vehicle and forcibly remove her. Soares could be heard yelling "leave me alone," before being slammed to the pavement, the witness said. The victim was taken to Sturdy Memorial Hospital with injuries including a fractured knee, a broken foot, a serious injury to her eye socket, and a severe head injury, as per WHDH.
A GoFundMe page has been established to aid Soares' recovery. Meanwhile, Sergeant Kevin Sellers of the Attleboro Police Department condemned the incident as "inappropriate and unacceptable conduct stemming from what was essentially a minor motor vehicle crash," as reported by WHDH. Kwesiah's arraignment is pending, and it is currently unclear if he has obtained legal representation.
