Cyclist Arrested After Road Rage Limo Smash

A bike messenger pedals upstream in Manhattan. (NewYorkDailyPhoto)

A bike messenger flew into a rage yesterday after getting clipped by a limo on 6th Avenue in Chelsea. As the awesomely-named Perzeus Forte, 20, was being led away in handcuffs after allegedly assaulting driver Darr Mohammed, he told the Post, "He hit me and kept going. I'm sick of this." The incident occurred around 1 p.m. after Mohammed grazed Forte near West 19th Street; the limo kept going but stopped at a red light at West 20th Street. But because of the stoplight, Forte was able to ditch his bike and dash up to the limo. "He was running like he was possessed. I just couldn't believe how mad he was," Mohammed says.

One witness claims Forte jumped onto the hood while screaming, "I'm going to kill you! I'm going to kill you, motherf- - -er!" According to the Post, Forte's rage was so Banneresque that he was "smashing in the windshield with his fists." He then allegedly jumped off the hood and shook the half-open driver's-side window until it shattered. "I swear to God I thought I was a dead man," recalled Mohammed. "He was going to kill me. I was not going to leave my car. He would have ripped my head off. This has never happened to me. I have a family at home."

Forte allegedly punched Mohammed in his left eye and ripped his shirt through the window. But luckily some other cyclists calmed Forte down before he picked up the limo and heaved it into the nearby Kinkos. While waiting for the cops, Forte passed the time "plucking out shards of glass" from his blood-soaked hands. He was arrested on charges of misdemeanor assault and harassment, but naturally the Post doesn't even bother to wonder why Mohammed wasn't also charged with hit-and-run.

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By John Del Signore in News on April 9, 2010 11:13 AM

Comments [rss]

fosiacat

congrats Perzeus Forte!

maybe next time mr. Mohammed will be more careful and courteous. or get his faced smashed the fuck in.

i live for vigilante justice.

PenelopeQ

What a horrible mess! I guess I can empathize with both sides of this story, but Perzeus definitely overreacted. Hopefully they'll start giving New York limousine drivers self-defense classes!

CYCLEROCK

The limo driver said was scared and said, "I have a family at home".

Its as if he thinks he can drive any way he wants and he is the only one that has a family.

Matteo

So when a bicyclist "GRAZES" my 9 year old daughter (in a crosswalk), should I pound on her/his face and shatter her/his head? That is worth getting arrested for. When I drive my car in nyc I treat bicycle traffic as vehicle traffic, not as pedestrians (and so does the law).

Ron

good for Perzeus! car and bus drivers are too aggressively antagonistic toward bicyclists, I'm glad someone has shown at least one of them that there are consequences to their inconsiderateness. and yes, where was the ticket for the car driver? is it legal to hit bicyclists with your car?

gerryvisco

They should have arrested the driver, too. He was hardly innocent. I completely understand why the biker was furious. I'd do the same thing in the heat of the moment, though I'm not sure I would have been able to shatter the windshield. Bravo! It's a dog eat dog world and a near brush with death may very well provoke rage. Next time, the driver should stop and apologize and if he's attacked, then he can fight back. That's New York City and if you're driving a car here or riding a bike, watch your back!

djbeefhart

"...calmed Forte down before he *picked up the limo* and heaved it into the nearby Kinkos."

That must have been awesome to watch!

blink

The best form of retaliation is to spit on the fucks. They'll remember that and you can't get a ticket for it.

Ragingsemi

Spitting on a cop is considered "assault". I'm not sure if it would be different if you spat on a civilian.

Liam

You can get a ticket for that.

Thespis

Yeah, spitting is battery. Doesn't mean you WILL get a ticket for it -- but you can.

LB

Only if you get caught in the act !

Bouncy

Curious: Was the cyclist riding in the bike lane when he was clipped by the limo?

jlocke

I think we're missing the most important flaw in this story: Kinkos is now FedEx Office.

Shamhammer

if he can throw a limo through the Kinkos window, why is he riding a bike?

Oped

I have no sympathy for the limo driver and I think that his response was appropriate. I had a limo take off the front of my car and when I got out to look at the damage, the driver took off before I could even get his plate number.

This scumbag driver knew that he "clipped" the cyclist who might have been injured but the limo driver just kept going. He didn't care. He was driving a 6000 pound machine against a man on a bike.

I am glad he kicked his ass and only sorry he had to be arrested for it.

Dwayne Hoover

Too bad he didn't beat the driver senseless with a U-lock then hit the road. Note to bicyclist: DO NOT WAIT FOR THE POLICE! THEY WILL NEVER BE YOUR FRIEND!

InTheHeights

Really sick of all of the whining. I have cycled in NYC since 1999, commuting five days a week from Prospect Heights to Chelsea for work. If you are a cyclist who does not follow the rules of the road (ie act like a car) then you have no right to complain. Do you go the wrong way down a street? How about cut lanes? Do you draft a car and then cut around when you see an opening? Do you run lights? Do you use your arm signals? Do you stop for pedestrians when they have the right of way? So many cyclists & "bikers" bitch about driver's while careening around the city using their "skill" to navigate the "hostile terrain". Yes, cycling in NYC is dangerous. Yes, there are idiots. However, any cyclist who does not follow the rules of the road themselves do not have the right to complain. I know, I am one of them. I accept the risks that my decision to enter the fray brings as well as the risks that I court when I choose to break certain rules of the road. Get out there, do your thing, and quit whining!

Spirit of 76

Nice rant. Now do you want to show us where the Post article says the cyclist was doing any of the things you're yelling about?

Manitoba

Glad to know that you were there and know all cyclists so well that you can make sweeping judgments on everyone and everything. You sound like a really special person. Kudos to you.