Drunken man runs through traffic, threatens 2 PennDOT workers at Fort Pitt Tunnel, police say
State police arrested a man Tuesday who they say ran through traffic, threw rocks at a PennDOT vehicle and armed himself with a brick at the Fort Pitt Tunnel in Pittsburgh.
Bilgehan Muhlis Dogrusoz, 44, who is transient and does not have a permanent address, faces charges including two counts each of simple assault and reckless endangerment and single counts of aggravated assault, defiant trespassing, disorderly conduct and public drunkenness, according to a criminal complaint filed against him.
Dogrusoz encountered a PennDOT worker at the turn-around lane between the upper and lower decks of the Fort Pitt Bridge around 1 p.m. Tuesday and threw rocks at the worker’s vehicle while also armed with a brick, the complaint said. A second PennDOT worker said the suspect approached him and threatened him while holding a knife, though Dogrusoz denied to police that he was carrying one.
Dogrusoz told police he had been drinking in excess and was “just trying to get out of there,” Trooper Adam Dancho said in the complaint.
The suspect was taken to Allegheny County Jail. His preliminary hearing is set for Nov. 23 in front of Magisterial District Judge Kim Berkeley Clark.
Justin Vellucci is a TribLive reporter covering crime and public safety in Pittsburgh and Allegheny County. A longtime freelance journalist and former reporter for the Asbury Park (N.J.) Press, he worked as a general assignment reporter at the Trib from 2006 to 2009 and returned in 2022. He can be reached at jvellucci@triblive.com.
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