Police Hunt for Person in Gorilla Mask Who Fired BB Gun at Oil Truck

Anyone with information is asked to contact police

A strange crime in New Hampshire has police on the hunt for a person donning a gorilla masked armed with a BB gun.

Police said it's probably a group of teenagers playing a Halloween prank, but when you involve a Victory Fuel truck carrying two thousand tons of oil driving along winding back roads, it's anything but funny.

Rich Yeatts is responsible for Victory Fuel truck 12 and it's not always easy.

He says Monday afternoon he swerved to avoid an oncoming car in his lane as they passed he heard a ping on the windshield and saw something he never expected.

"It was either a gorilla or a monkey, just a big hairy mask," Yeatts said.

Police say the person, likely donning a Halloween costume early, fired a bb gun and hit the truck.

"Shocked, yeah, I didn't really know what happened until I saw the hole in the window and thought, oh my God," Yeatts said.

Newton Police Chief Lawrence Streeter says after the tragic truck crash in Oxford, Massachusetts this week, he can't help but to think of the 'what ifs,' he says especially if Yeatts lost control of the 2,000 tons of fuel.

"There was a mother and a two-month-old killed and that could've happened here," Chief Streeter said.

"I could have hit a pedestrian, could have rolled it, thank God none of that happened," Yeatts said.
As Yeatts waits for a new windshield for truck 12, he's got a message for the people responsible.

"It's funny to you and funny to everyone else but it can really do some damage," he said. "Just think twice."

Police are looking for a small dark colored compact car that's been lowered with a really loud exhaust. They say there were three people in the car during the incident.

Anyone with information on the incident is asked to call Newton Police at 603-382-1733.

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