CAPE CORAL, FL – Police have arrested Thomas Vincent Yanoti III, 61, of Cape Coral after he road raged Wednesday afternoon and fired a gun into an occupied car after becoming enraged during a traffic incident.
Yanoti, according to police discharged his gun on I-75 in Cape Coral and was arrested at his home on Thursday.
“Southwest Florida is safer this morning with this person off our streets,” said Sheriff Kevin Rambosk. “I commend our detectives for their diligence in identifying this individual and I thank our partners at Cape Coral Police Department for safely taking him into custody.”
According to the sheriff’s report, deputies were called to I-75 at Immokalee Road shortly after 3 p.m. to a report of shots being fired into a vehicle.
“The investigation determined that Yanoti’s vehicle hit the victim’s vehicle from behind as both were merging onto I-75 north at Immokalee Road,” Rambosk said in a statement. “The victim pulled over on the side of the onramp to exchange driver information, and Yanati pulled ahead of him and stopped as well. Yanoti exited his car, began walking toward the victim’s car, pulled out a firearm and began firing shots through the victim’s windshield.”
Panicked and scared, the victim laid across the front seat of his vehicle to avoid the gunfire as Yanoti continued to shoot. When the gunshots stopped the victim sat back up but Yanoti fired again. Yanoti got back in his car and drove north on I-75.