Police: Truck Drove Into Crowd Of Drag Race Spectators On Purpose

FREDERICK COUNTY, Md. (WJZ) -- A truck plowed into a large crowd gathered to watch drag races at a popular track in Frederick County.  Investigators now think it was intentional.

Weijia Jiang has the story.

Police say what started as a verbal fight between two guys ended in a physically dangerous situation for everyone in the crowd.

Contests at the 7580 Dragway in Monrovia make it a hot spot for racing enthusiasts.  On Friday, however, police say part of the large crowd that gathered to watch became a target for Justin Wachter, 25.

"The 25-year-old man was there with a couple friends and allegedly got into some altercation.  He decided to take out aggressive behavior by ramming his car into the crowd," said Alaina Russo, Maryland State Police.

Police say it happened on a grassy area right next to the track, which is packed with people on race days.

"A lot of people park their cars there if they need work," said Richard Kuhlman.  "They're not thinking someone's gonna drive into them, that's for sure."

Kuhlman has been coming to the dragway for 35 years.

"I've never heard of any incident like that before.  People get upset but I've never seen someone drive a vehicle into a crowd.  That's pretty malicious," Kuhlman said.

Police say one man was treated at the hospital.  The truck only grazed three others.  Still, Wachter faces first- and second- degree assault, charges for each of the four people he hit.

A search of court records shows Wachter---who's from Poolesville---has a long history of traffic-related charges for speeding and not driving right of center.  In 2009, he was arrested for drunk driving but later cleared.  Wachter could spend up to 35 years behind bars for each of the four sets of assault charges he faces.

Wachter has yet to return calls asking for comment about the charges.