Waterbury man accused of multiple incidents of stalking, aggressive driving on highway

WATERBURY, Conn. (WFSB) - A 52-year-old Waterbury man has been arrested after a woman reported he had been harassing her on the highway, causing her to fear for her safety.

The woman reported the multiple incidents to the police on May 10, immediately after the latest encounter.

She explained to police that a white Cadillac Escalade had been repeatedly harassing her during her commute by driving aggressively and threateningly since December 2022.

During these encounters, the driver of the Cadillac, later identified as Nicholas Perugini 3rd, would travel closely behind her vehicle, flash his high-beams, or pass her vehicle, merge in front of her, and travel at a slow speed with his hazard lights on.

The complainant explained she would attempt to change lanes to create distance between the two vehicles, but Perugini would consistently pull in front or behind her vehicle.

She said she routinely saw Perugini’s Cadillac in the same area of the highway, traveling along the same route, and feared retaliation if she reported the incidents to the police.

She would go on to change her schedule to avoid Perugini’s Cadillac and have a coworker follow her in a separate vehicle during her commute, according to state police.

On May 10th, during the last encounter before the complainant called the police, she had been traveling on I-84 Eastbound in the area of Exit 9 in Newtown when Perugini’s Cadillac approached her vehicle, driving in the same erratic manner as before.

The complainant and her coworker were able to see that a white male was driving and took down his license plate number.

Police then determined that the Cadillac was registered to Nicholas Perugini 3rd. Upon visiting his address, they saw a white Cadillac Escalade parked outside.

Police spoke with Perugini over the phone who said he had been driving the Cadillac during the time the complainant described, but denied driving erratically or aggressively.

An arrest warrant was obtained in April and Perugini was taken into custody June 8.

He was charged with breach of peace in the 2nd degree and stalking in the 2nd degree.

Perugini was released on a $10,000 court-set bond and is scheduled for arraignment at Waterbury Superior Court, on 06/23/2023.

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