CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Two drivers with guns were involved in a dangerous case of road rage on a busy Charlotte highway.
The suspect pointed a gun at the victim multiple times, according to the Charlotte Mecklenburg Police Department. That’s when the victim pulled out his own gun and fired shots at the other driver.
It happened last week on I-485 near the West Boulevard exit. It’s just the latest case of road rage turning Charlotte streets into crime scenes.
NBC Charlotte obtained audio recordings of the 911 call in the latest incident.
The 33-year-old victim says he feared for his life and that's why he opened fire on the other driver. It shows how quickly things can escalate out on the roads, and it can happen at any time.
It was around 11:40 a.m. on May 22. It wasn't even lunchtime yet, but the 911 caller had a mouthful to tell police.
“I was driving down 485 inner, a gentleman pointed a gun at me, and I was in fear of my life,” the caller told the dispatcher.
Off camera, the 33-year-old man told NBC Charlotte the incident started on I-485 near the Arrowood exit. He says he pulled in front of another vehicle that was driving slowly in the left lane. That’s when he says the suspect got upset and pointed a gun at him.
“He was in a brown truck and he had a camouflage pistol,” the caller told the dispatcher.
Then the situation escalated near the West Boulevard exit. The victim says the suspect pointed a gun at him again, and this time he could not get away.
“I tried to slow down to get away from him and he got right on the side of me and pointed it at me, so I fired at him,” the caller told the dispatcher.
Just last month, NBC Charlotte reported on a different road rage case involving a gun. A woman named Ashley said a drive with her husband turned into what felt like a near-death experience near I-85 and Brookshire Boulevard.
"I look at him and go, ‘What are you doing?',” Ashley previously told NBC Charlotte. “And he picks his gun up and waves it like that and then points it at my face."
According to the Federal Department of Transportation, the number of road rage fatalities jumped dramatically from 110 in 2007 to 487 in 2017, which is a 350 percent increase.
Fortunately, both Ashley and the 33-year-old man in the latest case walked away uninjured.
Police say after the 33-year-old man called 911, he waited for officers to arrive on scene. The suspect continued driving after the shots were fired. Police say no arrests have been made in the case at this point.