Brooklyn man charged with arson during road rage attack on Verizon workers

August 8, 2024 Brooklyn Eagle Staff

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CROWN HEIGHTS/DOWNTOWN BROOKLYN — A BROOKLYN MAN WAS ARRESTED AND CHARGED in Brooklyn Federal Court Thursday morning with arson during a road rage attack against Verizon utility workers. The defendant, Kevindale Nurse, was charged with arson for allegedly throwing an explosive device into a Verizon utility work van during a road rage attack in Crown Heights back on Jan. 31. Court filings indicate that Nurse was driving a white minibus identified as a commuter “dollar van,” with his four-year-old son as a passenger, when a Verizon utility van cut him off. Surveillance video captured Nurse driving erratically before he stopped his minibus alongside the Verizon van at the intersection of President St. and Brooklyn Ave., opened his vehicle’s door, grabbed an explosive device and threw it into the driver’s side window of the Verizon van. The two repairmen sustained multiple injuries from the ensuing explosion and their van had extensive damage. The utility technicians had been working on high speed data lines and fiber optic equipment before they were attacked. “As alleged, Nurse deliberately threw an explosive device into the window of another vehicle on a public road, endangering the lives of the vehicle’s occupants and others in the area,” stated U.S. Attorney Breon Peace. “Unfortunately, road rage is an all-too common occurrence in our communities. But this dangerous and senseless attack on a busy intersection in the heart of Brooklyn was beyond the pale. We will vigorously prosecute this case.”

The defendant was scheduled to appear before United States Magistrate Judge Lara K. Eshkenazi Thursday afternoon.

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