Hunter
06/04/22
A Missouri man faces charges after allegedly pointing a handgun at a motorist on Highway 218 Friday afternoon.
According to police reports, 32-year-old Ethan Messer of Monroe City was traveling southbound on the highway near Hills at around 4:15 pm Friday in the left hand lane when he came up on a slow-moving semi. He reportedly made an abrupt lane change that caused a motorist behind Messer to nearly hit him. The driver of the vehicle honked his horn at Messer.
The driver then passed Messer, who had moved back to the left hand lane. As they were doing so, Messer allegedly rolled down his passenger-side window and pointed a black pistol out the window toward the driver, then set in on the dashboard. His actions put the driver and front passenger in fear, and both called the Joint Emergency Communications Center to report the incident.
The Washington County Sheriff’s Department was able to locate Messer based on the description provided of his person and the firearm. A traffic stop was initiated, and a black and white 1911 pistol was located inside the vehicle.
Messer was taken into custody and charged with Assault while Displaying a Dangerous Weapon, an aggravated misdemeanor punishable by a maximum jail sentence of two years if convicted.