EAST PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WPRI) — An East Providence man accused of opening fire on another driver’s car on the highway earlier this month has been arrested, according to Rhode Island State Police.
Nicholas Peguero, 30, was taken into custody Wednesday and is facing a number of charges, including felony assault, drive-by shooting and using a firearm while committing a crime of violence.
Troopers responded to I-95 North in Providence on Aug. 16 shortly after receiving a call from the victim, according to a court affidavit obtained by 12 News.
The victim, identified by police as a 45-year-old Pawtucket man, told the troopers he was merging onto the highway from Memorial Boulevard when Peguero nearly cut him off.
The men flipped each other off before Peguero pulled out a gun and started firing it at the victim’s car from his driver’s side window, according to the affidavit.
The affidavit states that one of the bullets shattered the rear passenger’s side window of the victim’s car, while another was found lodged within the door. The victim was not injured and immediately pulled over.
Investigators were eventually able to identify Peguero as the driver and tracked him to the nearby barbershop where he worked, according to the affidavit.
Detectives executed 11 search warrants throughout the investigation, one of which was for Peguero’s dash camera.
The affidavit states that Peguero’s dash camera captured a conversation between him and his twin brother Alexis Peguero outside of the barbershop immediately after the incident.
Throughout the conversation, which was included in the affidavit, Nicholas admitted to shooting at the victim’s car.
“It just felt like something took over,” Nicholas told his brother. “I let the anger take control … and I really shot that gun.”
“It takes a situation in life where you’re like, ‘I can never do that again,'” Alexis replied.
Alexis told his brother to “lay low for a long time,” according to the affidavit.
“You should act normal like it never happened,” Alexis said.
The affidavit reveals that Alexis later told investigators he wasn’t aware of any incidents that his brother could’ve been involved in that morning and that Nicholas didn’t mention anything out of the ordinary to him.
Detectives would later search Nicholas’ East Providence home and find the pistol he used in the road rage incident, as well as four large-capacity magazines.
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Nicholas was arraigned Tuesday and granted $45,000 surety bail. He was ordered to have no contact with the victim and is scheduled to return to court on Dec. 4.
In addition, Alexis was charged with obstruction of an officer and released on $5,000 personal recognizance. His next court date is scheduled for Sept. 28.
