Lakeland man accused of beating driver with hammer during road rage: 'Violent and brutal'

WINTER HAVEN, Fla. - A Lakeland man was booked on multiple felony charges after deputies say he brutally attacked another driver with a hammer during a road rage incident in Winter Haven while the victim’s children were inside the vehicle.

The backstory:

According to the Polk County Sheriff’s Office, the incident happened shortly before 5 p.m. on Wednesday at the intersection of Helena Road and Cypress Gardens Boulevard.

When deputies arrived, they found a man with a bloody nose. Investigators said the other driver had already left the area before law enforcement arrived.

According to witness and victim statements, the victim was driving on Cypress Gardens Road when two trucks hauling rocks allegedly cut him off in traffic.

Investigators say the victim later passed the trucks and moved into a turn lane for Helena Road.

Dig deeper:

While stopped at a traffic light, one of the trucks allegedly pulled in front of the victim’s vehicle, preventing him from leaving.

Deputies say an argument then broke out between the drivers.

According to investigators, one of the truck drivers opened the victim’s car door and beat him before returning to his truck to retrieve a hammer.

Deputies say the suspect, identified as Jose Rosa Negron, 39, repeatedly hit the victim with the hammer, grabbed him by the hair, slammed him to the ground and continued the attack.

 "Violent and brutal"

"The suspect furiously attacked another driver; it was violent and brutal, and left the victim bloodied, with a broken nose. Making the situation worse was that it all happened in front of the victim’s children who were in the vehicle with him," Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd said. 

Detectives later contacted the registered owner of the trucks. Rosa Negron, of Lakeland, was arrested Thursday.

Rosa Negron faces the following charges:

• Burglary with battery (First-degree felony)
• Aggravated battery with a deadly weapon (Second-degree felony)
• False imprisonment (four counts, third-degree felony)