Man stabbed after apparent road rage incident in Gulfport

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A 53-year-old man was recovering in the hospital after another case of road rage ended in a violent  fight, this time at a Gulfport convenience store.

Gulfport Police said the incident started Tuesday afternoon when one driver cut the other off, and the drivers exchanged words.

Sgt. Thomas Woodman said that's where it should have ended, but minutes later, the drivers ended up at  the Sun Coast Food Store on 58th Street South.

"They were both traveling southbound on 58 and coincidentally went into the same convenience store,"  Woodman said. "They're both local residents of the area, so it wouldn't be uncommon for that to happen."

The drivers ended up in line together and surveillance cameras recorded as they got into a heated argument, which turned into a brawl as they reached the doorway of the business.

The fight spilled into the parking lot where, according the police, John Reynolds, 23, stabbed Leonel Garcia twice in the stomach.

"He could have hit a vital organ at any point in time," Woodman said.

The video shows Garcia walking back into the store, where he shows other customers his injuries. Moments later, Robin Althaus, who owns Fazio's Pizza in the same shopping center, ran over to help.

"It was pretty deep. I saw the blood and I just knew that I needed to apply pressure and stop the bleeding," she told FOX 13 News, adding she didn't know, at that point, the fight stemmed from a road rage incident. "I had no clue that it was a road rage situation until 8:00 [Tuesday] night. So it's awful. It's awful. It needs to stop. People need to just be slow, take their time, they need to just be more observant to others."

Althaus said, as she waited for paramedics, she couldn't believe what she saw Reynolds do next.

"He pumped his gas calmly, got in his car calmly and drove off," she said. "[He] didn't care, like he had no remorse, and that's what's really sad with this world. It's awful."

Garcia was taken to the hospital where, according to friends, he had surgery and was recovering.

Police arrested Reynolds about two hours later and charged him with aggravated battery. FOX 13 News stopped by his house, but no one came to the door.