Alexandria man arrested for allegedly brandishing gun from car in West End

An Alexandria man is being held without bond for allegedly brandishing a handgun and destroying property near his West End apartment.

Jimmy Simms, 38, was charged with brandishing a firearm, destruction of property, driving on a revoked/suspended license and reckless driving.

The incident occurred just after midnight on Monday, August 22. The victim, a man driving west on West Braddock Road, reported to police that he was threatened by a man with a gun driving a silver GMC Arcadia.

The victim was at a red light behind the GMC, and when the light turned green, “the vehicle began driving approximately 10 miles per hour and slamming onto the breaks,” police said in a search warrant affidavit.

The affidavit continued, “(The victim) then passed the vehicle and turned left onto North Van Dorn Street. The (suspect’s) vehicle then drove on the wrong side of the road to get past him and began driving in front of him while slamming on his breaks several times again. The (suspect’s) vehicle pulled over into the bike lanes and as (the victim) was driving past, the suspect, later identified as Mr. Jimmy Simms, pointed a black handgun at him.”

The victim drove away to a parking lot in the 2600 block of N. Van Dorn Street, when he heard a car crash coming from a parking lot a block away in the 2500 block. The victim then confronted Simms with a can of pepper spray, and Simms ran into a nearby apartment building, according to the search warrant affidavit.

Witnesses told police that Simms had a black handgun in his waistband when he entered the building. He was arrested inside his fourth floor apartment, and allegedly told police that he had a gun, but that “you’ll never find it.”

Simms goes to court for the offenses on Wednesday, September 14.

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