The workers told deputies the man had threatened to shoot them, the Pinellas County Sheriff says.

SEMINOLE – A 79-year-old man is accused of pointing a gun at four road workers and threatening to shoot them, according to the Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office.

Nicholas C. Belmonte, 79, of 11622 Tradewinds Blvd., Largo, was charged with four counts of aggravated assault.

The incident happened about 8:20 a.m. Thursday (Dec. 29) at the intersection of 109th Avenue and County Road 296 in Seminole. When deputies arrived, four road workers employed by Traffic
Control Devices, told the deputies they were working on the side of the roadway when an older man in a Ford Explorer drove up to them and got out of his vehicle. The road workers told deputies that the man brandished a black handgun with a laser pointer and pointed the laser at the worker’s heads threatening to shoot them with the gun. The workers took cover behind their vehicles and called 911. The man drove away in his Explorer.

Deputies said the man was upset because one of the contract workers verbally confronted the suspect’s wife a few minutes before for not picking up her dog’s waste after her dog defecated in the field nearby. Deputies found Belmonte at his home. They said they also found the laser-equipped .32 mm handgun that was still in Belmonte’s possession.

Deputies said Belmonte admitted to the allegations, claiming that he was trying to intimidate and scare the workers for upsetting his wife.

For information about the Pinellas sheriff, go to pcsoweb.com.

Pinellas Sheriff | Aggravated Assault | Crime | Arrests | Tampa Bay Reporter

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