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Shocking video obtained by the dash camera of Eric Popper's car has come to light where he can be seen pulling out his gun and shooting another driver passing by in a road rage case that happened in Miami, Florida.
The clip was first obtained by talk show host Andy Slater. The clip has gone viral on social media with thousands of retweets on Twitter.
What led to Popper firing his gun
In the beginning of the clip, the 30-year-old man can be seen cutting-off another car on I-95 in Miami-Dade County, while enjoying the music playing in his car.
After driving ahead, Popper then looked in his rearview mirror to see if there was a car following him before reacting and saying, "Oh, f*ck off" after being honked at.
As he monitored the car behind him, he reached into his Toyota Venza's center armrest and drew his gun.
Then, he was seen waiting for the other driver, who was allegedly gesturing at him, to pass, before firing 11 times at his vehicle.
When the incident occurred, the other driver was driving a black Toyota Camry. It was around 7 a.m. on June 21, 2021. Both drivers were reportedly heading south.
The same day, Popper, who was employed by the Miami Beach Fire Department at the time, turned himself into the Florida Highway Patrol after quitting his job.
After being released from jail, he faces felony charges including aggressive assault with a firearm, which could result in a prison term of up to 15 years if he is convicted of them. His hearing is scheduled for April 2022.
Eric Popper's lawyer has a different story for his defence
Popper's lawyer, Robert Gershman, told NBC Miami that his client acted wildly after he thought he was being shot at.
“You hear a bang on Mr. Popper’s car, akin to a gunshot, which precipitated the whole incident, so in this matter, the audio and video evidence we believe exonerates him.”
In another dashboard cam video, Eric Popper can be heard saying that he was just shot at and his car got hit.
The other driver, identified as Rene Suarez, revealed to investigators that he threw a water bottle at Popper's car while passing it.
After the incident, both the victim and Popper called 911. Both of their cars suffered bullet damage due to the gunfire.
