Karate Man Confronted Tinley Park Snowplow Driver: Cops

A karate man menaced a Tinley Park snowplow driver but explained he never intended to do him any harm, police said.

The plow driver, Joe McClellan reportedly told police that 64-year-old Victor Plastiak was shoveling the driveway of his Ridgefield Lane home on Feb. 1 and “moved towards the street as if he was going to prevent the plow from passing.”

“McClellan stated that as he passed he looked in his rear mirror he saw Plastiak fall down but did not know why he fell,” police said. As he came back down the other side of the street in his plow, a “man believed to be Plastiak’s son came out of the residence. The man confronted McClellan saying, ‘hey a--h---, you knocked down my old man.’”

McClellan reportedly “replied he did not mean to knock anyone down and then continued on his route.”

Two days later, McClellan “again encountered Plastiak while on his snow removal route,” police said. This time, Plastiak used his car to block the plow in a cul-de-sac.

“McClellan stated Plastiak said, ‘Come out of the truck I want to talk to you,’ in an aggressive manner,” according to a police report. He “also said he would spit on him and would fight him and made a karate style motion towards McClellan.”

McClellan remained in his plow, according to the report, and “Plastiak moved his vehicle when McClellan said he would call the police. McClellan then continued his snow removal route.”

An officer spoke to Plastiak later that day. He reportedly said “he was shoveling the driveway near the street when he saw a snow plow coming at what he believed to be a high rate of speed.”

“Plastiak stated he stepped back about four feet from the curb and as the snowplow passed a chunk of ice struck him in the leg,” police said. He related that was the reason he fell down and expressed his belief that McClellan did it on purpose.

Plastiak admitted to confronting McClellan and said he “aggressively told him to come out of the truck so they could handle the dispute man to man,” police said. “Plastiak stated both men were talking with some aggression in their voice.”

Plastiak then mentioned “he is a former martial artist and firearms instructor,” police said. “He also said he wasn’t trying to hurt the driver, if he was he would have pulled him from the truck.”

The officer told “Plastiak not to confront plow drivers, and instead contact public works when an issue arises,” police said.

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