Man arrested for assault and vandalism after driving aggression incident near downtown Austin

AUSTIN, Texas — Last week, police arrested a man on assault and vandalism charges following a road rage incident involving a knife near downtown Austin.

According to police, officers responded to a disturbance call at 1011 East 5th Street at 9:09 p.m. on Thursday, August 15, following reports of a violent altercation involving a knife.

The victim stated that a person, later identified as 40-year-old Mitchell Snellgrove, attempted to stab him and damage his vehicle before fleeing the scene in a blue Subaru Outback with Texas plates.

Upon arrival, officers spoke with the victim, who described Snellgrove allegedly hitting the passenger door of his vehicle while traveling south on Interstate 35 and attempting to merge into a clear lane as he approached a road construction site.

Instead of stopping, Snellgrove continued driving and the victim followed him until they stopped in front of the Chase Bank at 1011 East 5th Street, where the altercation escalated.

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According to court documents, Snellgrove approached the victim and both began arguing and exchanging information. Snellgrove then confronted the victim after learning that a photo of his license plate had been taken and confronted him by poking him in the chest. The victim pushed him away and Snellgrove pulled out a black pocket knife with a silver blade and waved it toward the victim. Snellgrove then slashed the front tire on the driver's side of the victim's vehicle before fleeing the scene.

Officers continued their investigation at the scene and gave the victim Snellgrove's insurance information, including an address the victim recognized as his own place of work: 8300 North I-35.

The victim later checked property records and was able to identify Snellgrove's Texas driver's license based on the address provided. This information led officers to confirm the blue Subaru's registration to the address 8300 North Interstate 35, which Snellgrove was associated with.

At approximately 10:30 p.m., officers observed a vehicle matching the description of the suspect's car pull into the parking lot at the listed address. They stopped the vehicle and arrested Snellgrove.

When he was arrested, Snellgrove stated that he was carrying a knife. It was later determined that it was an army green pocket knife with a black blade.

Snellgrove was taken into custody on a warrant for harassment.

Snellgrove admitted to being an Uber driver at the time of the incident and claimed the accident happened because the victim changed lanes. He acknowledged that he slashed the victim's tire out of anger, but denied using the knife aggressively against the victim, although he admitted to being frustrated.

Snellgrove was booked into the Travis County Jail and charged with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, a second-degree felony.