Cyclist Run Off The Road by Nissan Patrol 4WD in Australian Road Rage Incident

Though video of the incident emerged online some days ago, it’s actually a year old. It was posted to social media by the Australian Cycle Alliance, which campaigns for safety among cyclists on the roads, and then by the victim himself, a man the Daily Mail identifies as 29-year-old Jack McDonnell.

The driver of the Nissan was Michael Giarusso. He is seen in the video running McDonnell off the bicycle path and then getting out of his car to confront him. He yells and gestures towards a visibly shocked McDonnell and then takes his bike and flings it into the bushes. The whole thing went down in Melbourne’s St. Kilda, the Mail says.

The interesting part about the incident is that, legally speaking, Giarusso has paid his due. He was initially charged with 5 counts but he struck a deal with prosecutors and pleaded guilty to reckless driving, for which he was fined $1,000.

According to the publication, the video was posted online to shame Giarusso and expose him to even more public ridicule, in an active campaign by McDonnell meant to seek revenge. Court documents show that McDonnell had actually started the dispute by keying Giarusso’s car, which prompted him to drive furiously after him and hit him with the car.

McDonnell was charged with criminal damage with intent to damage or destroy, and he pleaded guilty so he could be placed into the diversion program for first-time offenders, which let him walk without a spotless record on the condition that he do community work. Also part of his deal was to write a letter to Giarusso to apologize, which he did.

However, it seems that he didn’t exactly love having to apologize to the man who hit him with his car, so he went public with the recording of the incident, which fortunately didn’t capture the moment he keyed the Nissan.

The Australian Cycle Alliance defends the posting of the video by saying no amount of damage to personal property should justify using your car as a weapon. “Nothing can excuse the recklessness of the driver. Nothing justifies the attack and the brutality,” Edward Hore, president of the Alliance, tells the Mail.