Docs: Driver threatened woman, baby with a gun after Hancock Co. crash

HANCOCK COUNTY, Ind. - A man faces multiple charges after police say he threatened a woman and her baby in the aftermath of a crash in Hancock County.




Jason Middleton, 45, is charged with felony counts of attempted rape, attempted kidnapping and criminal confinement in connection with the April 28 incident near 100 W. and U.S. 52.




A woman said Middleton crashed his van into the back of her car and pulled a gun on her. She told police he threatened to rape her and shoot her baby if she didn't get in his van, according to court documents. The woman later told police that she did not know Middleton.

Two witnesses arrived at the scene. Both saw the two vehicles on the side of the road. One of them said it appeared two people-Middleton and the woman-were engaged in a struggle and Middleton was trying to pull the woman somewhere.




The witness yelled at Middleton, who ran toward the van and got inside. The witness said Middleton had a gun in his right hand and took off south on 100 W. He talked to the woman and retrieved her phone so she could call police.

The woman's account

Deputies with the Hancock County Sheriff's Office responded to the scene and found the woman was visibly shaken by the encounter.




She told police she went to an eye appointment that morning and stopped to get gas. She was heading east on US 52 to get home when she noticed a blue van coming up on her quickly. She kept checking her rearview mirror because the vehicle would slow down and then pull right up behind her.




Eventually, she encountered a pickup truck that was turning and knew she had to stop. She also feared the van would hit her car, which is exactly what happened. She told police there were two impacts. She pulled off to the side of the road, as did the driver of the van, later identified as Middleton.




According to her account, when Middleton got out, he asked her what happened. She told him he'd hit her car twice, said she had a baby in the car and asked if he had insurance.




The woman was on the phone with police and provided them with a vehicle description and license plate number. Dispatchers told her officers were on the way and said to call back if the other driver left the scene.




Middleton, after getting his insurance information, asked about the baby, but the woman felt he was standing uncomfortably close to her when she went to retrieve her insurance information from her glove box.




The woman said Middleton then pulled a gun from his pocket, telling her he would rape her and shoot her baby if she didn't get in his van, according to court documents.




That led to a struggle in which she and Middleton fought over the gun. She shoved him, screamed and tried to get away. At one point, she said Middleton told her to "shut the f*** up, he was going to make her get in the van."




Witnesses soon arrived to help and Middleton took off.




The woman told police she was surprised the gun didn't go off during the struggle. She owns a gun but didn't have it with her because she was just going to an eye appointment and thought "everything would be ok."

Middleton's account

Authorities located the van at a home in Fountaintown in Shelby County. They found Middleton had taken refuge in a storage container. Investigators arrested him and didn't find a gun on the property.




During his interview, Middleton told police the woman slammed on her brakes, and he rear-ended her. By his account, he pulled over and provided her with his insurance information when she pulled a gun on him.




He claimed that led to a struggle and the woman dropped the gun. He told police he left the scene of the crash because he was afraid "she was gonna shoot me," according to court documents.




Police asked him why a witness saw him running away with a gun, which Middleton "stated was impossible." He maintained that he didn't have a gun and conceded he should have called the police.




He insisted he never threatened the woman or her baby and didn't try to force her into his van.




According to jail records, Middleton is being held on a $500,000 bond. He had an initial hearing on Monday with a jury trial tentatively scheduled for July.





via: https://fox59.com/news/indycrime/docs-driver-threatened-woman-baby-with-a-gun-after-hancock-co-crash/