A Villager found himself behind bars Sunday morning after a violent road rage incident.
Glen Henry Kielbowicz, 71, of the Village of Labelle, told a Marion County sheriff’s deputy that another driver cut him off in traffic in the 16400 block of U.S. 301 and he had to take evasive action to avoid a collision.
Kielbowicz admitted that the incident made him angry and said when they both stopped at a red light to turn left onto 132nd Street, he exited his vehicle and broke the other driver’s rear windshield wiper. He said the other driver then got out of his vehicle and a physical altercation broke out, a sheriff’s office report states.
But the other driver claimed Kielbowicz attacked him while he only confronted him verbally. He said Kielbowicz “tackled” him and they fell onto the asphalt, which caused several abrasions to the man’s knees and elbows. And the man claimed the small laceration on his eyebrow was because Kielbowicz struck him and broke his glasses, the report says, adding that the man estimated the cost to repair his windshield wiper between $100-$200 and the price for his glasses at $500.
After two witnesses confirmed the other driver’s story, Kielbowicz, who lives at 3660 Yale Ct., was transported to the Marion County Jail and charged with battery and damaging property/criminal mischief. He was released late Sunday night on $1,500 bond and his next court date hasn’t yet been set.
Kielbowicz and his wife, Patricia, are the first owners of their Village of Labelle home, having purchased it in July 2016. They paid $315,600 for the 2,085-square-foot residence, according to Sumter County property appraiser records.
