POLK COUNTY, Fla. — The Florida Highway Patrol (FHP) said three people were arrested after a physical altercation on Interstate 4 in Polk County on Thursday.
FHP said an officer responded to a disturbance on I-4 near mile marker 45 on April 2.
The officer said he arrived to find a semi-truck in the outside lane and two people, a man and a woman, standing on the outside shoulder.
The report said the semi-truck driver, 32-year-old Marcos Alexander Ramos, told the deputy a white pick-up truck was repeatedly changing lanes and breaking in front of him, forcing him to slow down and move over.
Both vehicles eventually stopped on the shoulder, and Ramos told the deputy he got out of his vehicle to approach the pick-up truck.
Ramos said the pick-up truck driver, 47-year-old Jeffrey Lynn Leedle, then "approached him in an aggressive manner" and started punching him, per the report.
Ramos said Leedle then approached 29-year-old Nasharelys Fernandez, the passenger riding with Ramos in the semi-truck.
According to FHP, Fernandez told the deputy Leedle attempted to punch her as well.
When the deputy spoke with Leedle, he said the semi-truck was the one driving recklessly and moving in and out of traffic, per the report.
FHP said Leedle told the deputy he called 911 to report the semi-truck and said he got in front of the semi-truck and slowed down "so the police could get them."
Leedle said Ramos threw a drink at his vehicle, and once both drivers pulled over, he said Ramos and Fernandez approached his vehicle and started banging on the windows.
According to the report, Leedle said he turned on his dash cam and attempted to record the incident with his phone, but Ramos allegedly reached into the truck and threw the phone on the ground.
Leedle told the deputy when he got out of his car, Ramos began hitting him, and once both of them were on the ground, Fernandez began scratching him and pulling his hair.
FHP said after speaking with all the parties involved and reviewing video footage from Leedle’s company, all three people were arrested just before 10:15 a.m.
According to the report, Ramos is charged with battery, reckless driving and throwing a deadly missile into a vehicle.
Leedle was charged with battery and reckless driving, and Fernandez was charged with battery, per FHP.
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