Cathedral City Probationer Charged In Moreno Valley Road Rage Incident

MORENO VALLEY, CA — A probationer accused of threatening a motorist during a road rage confrontation in Moreno Valley was charged Tuesday with being a felon in possession of live ammunition and other offenses.

Germaine Wade Murphy, 33, of Cathedral City was arrested Friday following a Riverside County Sheriff's Department investigation.

Subscribe

Along with the possession count, Murphy is charged with probation violations and being a prior-strike felon.

The defendant, who is being held in lieu of $20,000 bail at the Smith Correctional Facility, was slated to make his initial court appearance Tuesday afternoon at the Riverside Hall of Justice.

According to sheriff's Sgt. Rafael Victorio, on July 31, deputies received reports of a man brandishing a pistol at another driver during an unspecified conflict that happened on city streets, though the exact location wasn't provided.

Victorio said investigators were soon able to confirm the alleged assailant's identity, without disclosing how. For nearly two decades, Moreno Valley has operated a Citywide Camera System that sometimes aids in apprehending crime suspects who used area streets to make getaways.

Victorio said an arrest warrant was obtained for Murphy, and deputies tracked him to the 34000 block of Gateway Drive in Palm Desert, where a traffic stop was executed early Friday morning, and the defendant was taken into custody without incident.

Deputies then served a search warrant at his residence in the 37000 block of Bankside Drive.

"They located articles of evidentiary value," the sergeant said, without disclosing anything further.

No firearm was seized. It was unclear whether Murphy allegedly brandished a pistol at the victim, whose identity wasn't provided, or something resembling one.

Court records show the defendant was convicted last year of elder abuse and an enhancement for inflicting great bodily injury. No details were available regarding that case, which resulted in a six-month jail term and two years' felony probation.