A man was arrested Friday for allegedly attempting to run a pedestrian off the road, then threatening him with a metal pipe, and also for allegedly running another person off the roadway where they wound up in a ditch, according to the Lyon County Sheriff’s Office.
Jonathan Triplett was taken into custody after an investigation into the allegations, which happened Thursday, July 18 in Yerington, according to an Lyon County Sheriff’s Office news release.
On Thursday, July 18, 2024 at approximately 9:30 p.m., Lyon County Sheriff’s Office Dispatch received a report of an assault with a deadly weapon that had happened on Weed Heights Road in Yerington.
The victim had video recorded evidence of the altercation and reported being threatened and feared for his safety when a white flat-bed pickup truck with no plates intentionally tried to run him off the road as he walked home, the release states.
The suspect driver of the vehicle, positively identified from video and photographic evidence was Triplett. Triplett threatened the victim verbally and then got out of his vehicle, removed a metal pipe from the bed of his truck and went after the victim, the release states.
The victim was able to get away from Triplett and proceeded to hide among the bushes far off the roadway for the remainder of his walk home, according to the release.
Triplett reportedly circled back around again and drove slowly near where the victim hid. A third party witness confirmed the details of the crime and added that he had personal knowledge that Triplett was heavily intoxicated while all this was happening, the release states.
Shortly after the first victim made their report, Lyon County dispatch received another call from a second victim that had been forced off the roadway by a male driver causing her to crash her car into a ditch placing the second victim and her passenger in reasonable apprehension of immediate bodily harm, the release states.
The second victims’ description was that of Triplett driving the same white, flat-bed truck with no license plate from the first victims’ video. Lyon County Sheriff’s Office Deputies engaged in a thorough investigation and sought Triplett for questioning. Triplett was not found the night of the incident, the release states.
On July 19, 2024 at approximately 8:30 p.m., Lyon County Sheriff’s deputies followed up with Triplett at his home, Triplett admitted to confronting someone he suspected may have, at some point been on his property. Triplett could not give a date or time of the suspected trespassing and could not accurately describe the individual he assaulted. Triplett was not able to produce any proof of anyone actually being on his property, the release states.
Triplett also admitted to seeing someone crash their vehicle when he intentionally brake checked them because they shouldn’t have been following him, thus admitting to reckless and wanton disregard for life and property, according to the release.
Triplett was taken into custody and charged with:
— 3 counts Assault with a Deadly Weapon (ADW)
— 1 count Duty to stop at the scene of an accident
— 1 count Reckless driving – Wanton disregard
— 1 count driving an unregistered vehicle
Triplett’s bail is set at: $77,145.
