Man allegedly pulls out shotgun in road rage incident

A 65-year-old man remains behind bars after allegedly pulling a shotgun on a man following a bout of road rage on Sept. 5.

Kalispell resident Robert Allen Ellis faces a single felony count of assault with a weapon in Flathead County District Court following his arrest. He remains in the county jail, with bail set at $50,000.

The victim turned Ellis in to authorities, telling Flathead County Sheriff’s Office deputies that the 65-year-old followed him from the site of a “road rage” incident near Helena Flats to a fast food restaurant on U.S. 2 in Kalispell. After the two arrived at the burger joint, the other man — later identified by investigators as Ellis — got out of his truck wielding a black shotgun, according to court documents.

As he leveled it at the other motorist, Ellis allegedly told the victim to “go back [to] where he came from.”

Following that, Ellis got back into his truck and drove off, court documents said. A witness, who also contacted authorities, corroborated parts of the victim’s account, including the presence of a shotgun, and handed over Ellis’ license plate number, according to court documents.

Investigators used that information to track Ellis to his Third Avenue West home in Kalispell. There he found a truck matching the witness’ description and spotted a shotgun inside of it, court documents said.

When Ellis walked out of his home, deputies arrested him. He was booked in county jail Sept. 6.

For his part, Ellis allegedly told authorities the victim nearly ran him off the road at the intersection of Helena Flats Road and Reserve Drive. He acknowledged following the victim to a fast food restaurant and said he grabbed the shotgun because he suspected the other driver might “get tough,” court documents said.

News Editor Derrick Perkins can be reached at 758-4430 or dperkins@dailyinterlake.com.