Patrick Kreutzer pleads guilty to road rage attack in Clifton Springs

A Clifton Springs plumber tailgated, overtook and later followed a woman in a frightening act of road rage that had her screaming for help, all while his seven-year-old son was in the car with him.

Patrick Kreutzer.

A Clifton Springs plumber tailgated, overtook and later followed a woman in a frightening act of road rage that had her screaming for help, all while his seven-year-old son was in the car with him.

Patrick Kreutzer, 37, pleaded guilty in the Geelong Magistrates Court on Thursday to dangerous driving, unlawful assault and interfering with a motor vehicle.

The court heard Kreutzer was driving in Clifton Springs and followed a car closely, beeped his horn, and overtook the vehicle by driving in a bike lane.

Police prosecutor Senior Constable Andrew Clapham said Kreutzer was driving “aggressively” when he overtook the victim on July 24, last year.

Constable Clapham said Kreutzer continued driving and pulled out behind the victim on Jetty Road, and continued to follow her until they both came to a red light.

The court heard Kreutzer got out of his car and grabbed the victim’s windscreen wiper.

“The victim was in fear for her safety and screamed to get the attention of others who came to assist,” Mr Clapham said.

Kreutzer left the scene with his seven-year-old child, who was in the car at the time of the offending.

When police interviewed Kreutzer he was uncooperative and said he was disgruntled with people who drive 40 km/h in a 60 km/h zone.

Kreutzer’s lawyer, Adrian Paull, said his client was under a lot of pressure at the time of the offending.

“He let himself down as a father … he has no idea why he was behaving this way,” Mr Paull said.

Magistrate Peter Mellas convicted and fined Kreutzer $2500, and disqualified him from driving for 12 months.

Mr Mellas said he was “absolutely certain” the incident would have been frightening for the victim.

“You behaved in a way that was plainly putting yourself at risk and the person you were trying to intimidate to get out the way,” Mr Mellas said.

“There are so many ways this could have gone wrong, all because you lost your cool and couldn’t be patient,” he said.

Originally published as Patrick Kreutzer pleads guilty to road rage attack in Clifton Springs