Couple face charges over shots fired at car

HOT SPRINGS — A man and his girlfriend were arrested on felony charges after he was accused of shooting at a motorist in a roadrage incident.

Nathan Alan Pokrajac, 26, of Hot Springs was arrested shortly after 11 a.m. Monday and charged with aggravated assault, punishable by up to six years in prison.

His girlfriend, Madison Renae Rogers, 21, fled from Hot Springs police and was taken into custody shortly after 11:30 a.m. and charged with a felony count of theft by receiving of a firearm, punishable by up to six years, and misdemeanor counts of possession of a controlled substance, marijuana, and possession of drug paraphernalia.

According to the probable-cause affidavit, police officers were flagged down in the 2200 block of Albert Pike shortly before 10:30 a.m. Monday by a man who said he had been shot at a few minutes earlier by a driver in a blue BMW in the area of Hobson and Central avenues.

The man said he was eastbound on Hobson and had stopped at its intersection with Central when the BMW pulled up next to him and the driver yelled at him about honking at him. The man told the driver he didn’t honk at him and “all of a sudden” the driver threw a gallon of milk at the man, hitting his car, the affidavit said.

The man began to follow the BMW to get the license plate number and then a black handgun appeared through the sunroof and four rounds were fired at him, according to the affidavit. The man reported three more shots were fired as he continued to follow the BMW to Albert Pike, where he lost sight of the car in the 2200 block, the affidavit said.

Officers found the BMW abandoned in a parking lot in the 2700 block of Albert Pike. The victim went to the scene and confirmed it was the vehicle the suspect was driving, according to the affidavit. The vehicle was registered to Pokrajac, and in plain view in the front passenger seat was a .22-caliber shell cartridge, the affidavit said.

The man had noted there was a woman in the front passenger seat and gave police a description of both people.

Arkansas State Police Cpl. James Avant had responded to the Albert Pike area to assist and found Pokrajac and Rogers at a residence in the 500 block of Ledgerock. He detained Pokrajac, but Rogers fled into the house and then out the back door, the affidavit said.

She was found a short time later hiding in a tent next door and carried a backpack containing two .22-caliber handguns, the affidavit said. It was noted that one handgun contained cartridges similar to the one found in the BMW and the other gun had been reported stolen in Garland County, according to the affidavit.

Rogers also had six syringes and 19 Clonazepam pills in a plastic bag, the affidavit said.

Pokrajac had been arrested Aug. 8, after a traffic stop and charged with multiple felonies, including simultaneous possession of drugs and firearms, punishable by up to life in prison, possession of a controlled substance, heroin, and theft by receiving. He was released on $11,000 bond, which was revoked Monday.