Louisiana man steals a crane, uses it to cause complete chaos, car crashes on a busy highway
You see a lot on American highways. Crashes, road rage, inexplicable construction, the works. But you don’t often see a stranded motorist steal a crane and use it to smash cars. That is, unless you were there for a Louisiana man’s recent and wild shenanigans on a popular highway.
A 37-year-old Louisiana man stole a construction crane and used it to block traffic, causing car crashes and utter calamity
Matthew Vincent, a 37-year-old resident of Vinton, Louisiana, managed to get his RAM pickup truck stuck in a field near Interstate 10. However, rather than call an Uber, a cab, or a friend, Vincent broke into a nearby construction-site crane.
Unfortunately, he managed to drop multiple cables across the highway, causing multiple car crashes and several injuries.
According to a statement from the Louisiana State Police (LSP), “Further investigation revealed that Vincent had driven his RAM pickup off LA Hwy 108 near I-10, through a field, where it became stuck.”
“Abandoning the vehicle, Vincent crossed the interstate and unlawfully entered the crane positioned in the work zone,” the statement added. “Once inside, he manipulated the crane boom over the westbound lanes of I-10, obstructing traffic and causing the crashes.”
As for the why behind the what, you might think drugs or alcohol. After all, what use could Vincent possibly have for a construction crane?
However, none of the charges LSP brought against Vincent listed unlawful substances or driving under the influence (DUI). Instead, Vincent is looking at multiple charges of burglary, criminal negligence, obstructing a highway, criminal mischief, being a pedestrian on a highway (which is illegal, in case you didn’t know), and hit-and-run driving.
A crane for recovering a RAM
Humorously, one of the commenters on the police statement post suggested that Vincent may have intended to use the crane to recover his stuck RAM truck. “Guess his intent to use the crane to pull out the stuck Ram? Wild!” Wild, indeed.
If that really was his intent, the crane would have been up to the task. A standard truck-mounted crane can lift over 100,000 lbs, but the exact number depends on the classification. Still, it requires training so you don’t, you know, block highways and cause chaos.
