MOUNDSVILLE — Police responding to a vehicle crash in Moundsville said they came to discover the incident was the result of road rage, culminating with a gun being pointed at one of the drivers.

On March 4, Moundsville police responded to a two-vehicle accident on 12th Street. At the scene, police were told that one driver, Ricky Whitlatch, 59, of Glen Easton, had pulled a gun on the other driver after tailgating her for miles down Big Grave Creek Road. Whitlatch was detained and police say they found two guns, one in the car and one in his pocket. The other driver told police that she had passed Whitlatch in a passing zone, after which Whitlatch began tailgating her into the city limits. Once on 12th Street, the driver told police that Whitlatch rear-ended her vehicle and began yelling that he was going to shoot her. The three passengers in the woman’s car corroborated her story, police said. Police said Whitlatch described the incident as “a fit of rage” after being passed, and when tailgating, the other car slowed down, causing him to hit their car. Afterward, Whitlatch allegedly said he drew his gun out of fear that the other car would shoot him, and that he pointed the gun out the window, using its laser sight to indicate that he was armed.

Whitlatch was arrested and charged with four counts of wanton endangerment involving a firearm, four counts of brandishing deadly weapons, and one count of destruction of property, all felonies. He posted $7,500 bond from the Northern Regional Jail.