Stamford Man Charged With Manslaughter In Road Rage Incident

STAMFORD, CT — Emmanuel Matias, 25, was charged with manslaughter on Wednesday in connection with a road rage incident that occurred on Nov. 17 in Stamford following a minor car accident, according to an arrest warrant.

Matias was originally charged last month with second-degree assault of an elderly person, and held on a $250,000 bond.

The victim, 71-year-old Michael Frank Gentile, died at Stamford Hospital on Nov. 18 from injuries sustained during the altercation.

The Office of the Chief Medical Examiner said the cause of death was "complications of blunt injury of head with subdural hemorrhage," the warrant said.

Matias, who is a Stamford resident, was served with the warrant while appearing at Stamford Superior Court on Wednesday, the Stamford Advocate reported.

Stamford police said around 12:30 p.m. on Nov. 17, the department received calls about a fight on Cold Spring Road near the area of Long Ridge Road. Police said a minor car accident happened just prior.

According to the arrest warrant, Stamford Police Officer Leslie Lugo wrote that upon arriving at the scene, a Dodge pickup truck and Honda were in the roadway, and Gentile was "on the ground unconscious, bleeding from the face, nostrils and back of his head."

Police said in the warrant that a minor collision occurred on Cold Spring Road between a pickup truck, driven by Gentile, and a Honda, driven by Alejandro Ovalles. The two cars eventually stopped.

Police noted in the warrant the front bumper of the Honda was partially detached from its body.

Lugo said Matias told police Gentile hit the car he was in, and tried running it off the road. Matias said he punched Gentile in the face in self-defense because Gentile was "reaching for something in his car," according to the warrant.

Before the assault, witnesses said Gentile was "calmly interacting" with Matias and his siblings, Alejandro Ovalles and Samantha Ovalles, who had been in the Honda, the warrant said.

The warrant said witnesses described the occupants of the Honda, who exited their car, as being "agitated and yelling at Gentile."

Video footage also shows Matias punching and pulling at Gentile’s door prior to the assault, the warrant said.

Lugo wrote that surveillance footage from a nearby business showed Gentile "standing in between both vehicles with his arms down to his side in what appears to be a non-aggressive posture" prior to being hit by Matias.

The Advocate reported that Alejandro Ovalles and Samantha Ovalles were arrested Wednesday at Stamford Superior Court and charged with breach of peace. The Advocate said Alejandro Ovalles was also charged with attempt to commit criminal mischief.

After the assault, Lugo wrote in the warrant, Alejandro Ovalles engaged with a bystander who witnessed the incident and said, “You crash someone, you get knocked out.”

On Wednesday, Judge John Blawie set Matias' bond at $250,000.

Matias' next court date is Jan. 19.