A road rage incident prompted an arrest at a Publix grocery store in The Villages.
A woman said she pulled into the Publix at Southern Trace Plaza at about 11 a.m. Friday when another driver, later identified as 31-year-old Grant Mitchell Patterson III of Belleview, pulled into the parking lot, too, according to an arrest report from the Sumter County Sheriff’s Office. The woman was not sure what had triggered the road rage incident, but was concerned when the man pulled into the parking lot near where she was about to park.
The woman said she rolled down her passenger window in an attempt to “smooth things over” with Patterson. However, he displayed a “big knife” and called the woman a “fat bitch.” He threatened to cut her throat and said he would “kill her with no problems.” She was able to get a photo of him and the license plate of his vehicle.
Patterson returned to the store on Sunday and was spotted by a deputy. When the deputy approached Patterson’s vehicle, “the distinct odor of marijuana” was detected. He was found to be in possession of marijuana and a glass pipe. He initially tried to claim the pipe was a “nicotine vape.”
The Michigan native was arrested on charges of aggravated assault, possession of marijuana and possession of drug equipment. He was booked at the Sumter County Detention Center and released after posting $4,000 bond.
In 2020, Patterson was arrested after displaying a knife in another road rage incident in The Villages. However, charges in that case were later dropped by the prosecutor’s office.
