SCHUYLKILL COUNTY, Pa. — State Police say a fight broke out Monday afternoon in the southbound lanes of Route 61 near the Brick Hill Road intersection outside Orwigsburg.
According to court documents, several witnesses told police they saw a man, later identified as 29-year-old Tamiir Whitted of Pottsville, pull his silver Honda Accord across both lanes of travel, blocking the vehicle of 38-year-old Orwigsburg native George Marcincin.
During the ensuing fight, police say the driver of the Accord stabbed Marcincin repeatedly.
He was later pronounced dead.
Whitted was arrested and charged with first and third-degree murder. He told Newswatch 16 Monday night that he acted in self-defense.
Auburn resident Paul Colna was startled when he heard the news Monday.
"I was really surprised. You here about that in bigger cities and towns and stuff, but not here," she said.
Witnesses reported that the vehicles had been racing and cutting each other off for miles before the fight.
Orwigsburg resident Kristen Reed says erratic driving is not uncommon.
"Well, you’ll have people cutting you off, but you never have people getting out of their cars and fighting in the middle of the highway," said Reed.
Colna tells Newswatch 16, "You see a lot of people weaving in and out and stuff, and it probably does get people mad."
If she ever encounters road rage, Reed says she will be cautious.
"I would stay in my car and lock the door. You never know who has a knife or a gun anymore."
Brendan Fox was just leaving his job in Orwigsburg yesterday when he first heard about the incident.
"People have yelled back and forth, but I’ve never even heard of something like that. It’s just rough to see," said Fox.
And tonight, he's thinking about Marcincin's family.
"He actually shopped at the store that I work at, and he wasn’t a regular, but I know that he had children and family, and it’s just heartbreaking to see. It’s something that makes you think twice about how you should drive and how you should be on the roads."
Troopers are still asking the public for more information about Monday's incident.