A Holbrook man is facing charges following a dispute between two groups of juveniles on April 10.
Police Chief William Smith says that at approximately 1:15 p.m. officers responded to the playground at Holbrook Middle Senior High School after a juvenile said that a man in a red pickup truck tried to run them and a group of friends over.
An investigation determined that the incident began as a verbal argument between two children one a 7-year-old, the other an 8-year-old, one child was Black and one was white.
Other juveniles, ranging in age from 9 to 15, joined the confrontation that saw racial epithets being used, and the altercation became physical, though no serious injuries were reported.
Smith says one of the children called a relative, 36-year-old Shane Belleville, who arrived after the fighting stopped and the groups separated.
Belleville is accused of confronting a group of all Black children on a path while he was driving his pickup truck.
A verbal confrontation then took place between Belleville and the group and at some point a teenage girl allegedly spat on him, he allegedly responded by slapping her in the face.
Belleville is then accused of getting into his truck and reversing it towards the group, while yelling racial slurs, forcing them to quickly get out of the way to avoid being hit.
He then drove away from the scene.
Belleville is being charged with Assault and Battery; Civil Rights Violations (Four Counts); Assault with Intent to Intimidate Based on Race (Four Counts); and Assault with a Dangerous Weapon (Motor Vehicle) (Four Counts).
Photo Credit: Holbrook Police
