Mark Vieira arrested after alleged attack on SUV

Oct 15, 2010 News

– reportedly dumps tyres on East Bank roadway

Police yesterday arrested a city businessman after he reportedly smashed the windows of a sport utility vehicle (SUV) belonging to a McDoom Village tyre shop owner during an early morning altercation.

Mark Vieira

According to Ray ‘Tony’ Rutherford, who runs Tony’s Tyre Shop on the McDoom Public Road, a passing police patrol held Mark Vieira, a popular race car driver, during an incident in which several tyres were also thrown onto the four-lane highway.
It was not the first time that the two businessmen would have faced off. Six months ago, following a dispute over an adjoining property, hundreds of tyres belonging to Rutherford were said to have been taken away, allegedly at the orders of Vieira, and dumped at the city furnace.
Rutherford is claiming $45M in damages from that alleged act.
Yesterday, the tyre shop owner said that he was heading to his Jeep, parked in front of Vieira’s property next door, when the businessman jumped out of a vehicle.
“He tell me we can’t park here and he tek a piece of wood and started smashing my windows.”
According to Rutherford, he called the police and a patrol arrived shortly after.
“He threaten to send he boys and kill me…in the presence of the police. They took him away.”
Rutherford gave a statement yesterday and police were expected to hold a confrontation with Vieira who was released and said to be at the doctor late yesterday afternoon.
The tyre shop owner claimed that his workers were asked by Vieira’s wife a few weeks ago to “keep an eye” on the next door property.
“We were doing so and then today he come and without waiting to hear anything he started to act this way.”
A truck that had brought tyres was awaiting discharge. These tyres were all thrown on the roadway. The wood used to smash the windows remained in the jeep at the time of Kaieteur News’s visit.