Police: Hudson Valley Man Pointed ‘Ghost Guns’ at Man at Dunkin’

A road rage incident could have turned deadly when police allege a Hudson Valley man pointed a loaded "ghost gun" at someone at a local Dunkin'.

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On Tuesday around 7:30 a.m., the Saugerties Police Department responded to a complaint of a reported road-rage incident that occurred on Route 212 in the Town of Saugerties. The complainant reported to officers that another driver, later identified as 30-year-old Douglas J. Melka of Purling, pulled up alongside his vehicle screaming at the complainant about his driving and then used several racial slurs towards the driver.

The driver then reportedly followed Melka to the parking lot of the Dunkin Donuts on Ulster Avenue in the Village of Saugerties, where the complainant reported that Melka displayed a handgun and threatened the unnamed driver.

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Melka was located on Livingston Street in the Village of Saugerties, where police found Melka in possession of three unregistered handguns, all loaded with ammunition, police say. The handguns which police called "ghost guns" further lacked any identifying serial numbers as required by law, according to the Saugerties Police Department.

Melka was arrested and charged with menacing and three counts of criminal possession of a weapon, felonies.

He was arraigned in Village of Saugerties Justice Court and released by the court on his own recognizance.

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