Lower Burrell police arrested a man after a motorist accused him of purposely crashing into his vehicle during a road rage incident and then fleeing, according to authorities.

Gregory Thomas Costanzo, 60, of the 100 block of Caribou Circle in Lower Burrell was charged with a felony count of aggravated assault along with two counts of making terroristic threats, three counts of disorderly conduct and a count of causing an accident.

Costanzo was arrested Feb. 14 and released from the Westmoreland County jail two days later after a bail agency posted a $10,000 bond on his behalf, according to court records. He faces an April 11 preliminary hearing before District Judge Cheryl Peck Yakopec, according to court records.

Police wrote in a criminal complaint that a motorist told police he was traveling east on Route 56 when he passed a white Kia sedan that was in the right lane.

He said the driver of the Kia sped up until he was next to his Jeep and made an obscene gesture toward him, the complaint said.

The man told investigators he ignored the gesture and continued driving but, as he approached the merge point on Route 56 near the Hill Crest Country Club, the Kia sped up in the right lane and was straddling the shoulder when it struck the front of his Jeep, according to investigators.

The man told police he followed the Kia after being hit, but the driver repeatedly tapped his brakes to try to get the Jeep to stop following, the complaint said.

Police said the Jeep’s front fender was damaged, and there was white paint on the side, front and tire where it was struck.

Investigators said Costanzo was trying to back out of his driveway when officers arrived to question him, and there was recent damage to the driver’s-side door and left side mirror of the white Kia he was driving.

Costanzo told officers he had not driven his vehicle that day, the complaint said.

But, as police were questioning Costanzo, his wife came out of the house and told officers he had driven off after they got into an argument earlier in the day, the complaint said.

Police said Costanzo continued to insist the Kia had not been driven that day and became angry when officers asked him to step out of the car to look at the damage.

When Costanzo saw the damage on his car, “he became aggressive and loud” and yelled, “Who did this to my car?” before he began punching the vehicle, police said.

When an officer told him to calm down, Costanzo responded: “I’m going to grab you by the throat,” the complaint said.

Costanzo was handcuffed and taken into custody after shoving another officer who had responded to the scene, police said.

When officers placed Costanzo in a holding cell at the Lower Burrell police station, he told them: “I need to get home and kill my wife” and then chuckled, the complaint said.

Court records show that in June 2017 Constanzo pleaded guilty to misdemeanor charges of indecent exposure and open lewdness during a nonjury trial. He was sentenced to five years of probation.

Tarentum police arrested Costanzo in January 2017 after several children said they saw him standing naked at his window, pounding on the glass, as they walked to classes at Grandview Upper Elementary School.

Costanzo pleaded guilty in 2014 to charges of driving under the influence and was sentenced to 42 months of probation, court records show.

He also pleaded guilty in 2009 to a DUI charge and was sentenced to six months of probation, according to court records.

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