Details Released in Attempted Homicide in Lansdale

Keith Heffintrayer•

Jeffrey Thompson, 47, of Towamencin, is charged with attempted criminal homicide.

The details have been released in an attempted homicide that occurred in the parking lot of Wells Fargo Bank in Lansdale on Friday evening.

According to the affidavit of probable cause, Lansdale police were dispatched to the 200 block of West Main Street at 5:52 p.m. on Friday for a reported disturbance. Montgomery County Dispatch informed police that two men were screaming at each other in the parking lot, but upgraded the incident to potentially physical and then upgraded the incident a third time to include a vehicle crash with injuries.

Moments later, dispatch received another call from a man who identified himself as Jeff Thompson, stating that he had run over a man because he had stepped in front of his truck.

Upon arrival, police encountered Thompson, 47, of the 1600 block of Kriebel Road, Towamencin Township. He was still sitting in his vehicle, according to the complaint. Police described the truck as a large Ford F-250 with a snow plow mount on the front carrying so much rock salt that the rear tires were bulging and the rear suspension was sagging. Police also encountered the victim, identified as Billy Jay Wilson, of Perkasie, who was lying in the parking lot, screaming in pain. Wilson was taken from the scene via ambulance to Abington Hospital, where he remains in critical condition.

Witnesses on the scene told police that they saw a man with a bald head—identified as Wilson—banging on the window of Thompson’s truck, yelling "give me my f---ing money,” according to the report. Wilson continued to yell while banging on the driver’s side fender, while Thompson allegedly hit the gas and inched the truck back and forth an estimated six times. Then, with Wilson in front of the truck, Thompson allegedly hit the gas and pushed Wilson an estimated three truck lengths across the parking lot, causing Wilson to slam down onto the lot. Thompson then accelerated and drove over Wilson, before "peeling” out of the parking lot and turning against traffic down Susquehanna Ave, the report states.

According to Lansdale Borough Police Chief Michael Trail, Wilson was working as a subcontractor for Thompson’s construction company, and the initial argument stemmed from money that Thompson allegedly owed the victim. According to a source, the money owed included several weeks of pay, and the family has since launched a GoFundMe page to help assist with Wilson’s medical expenses.

As a result of the incident, Thompson is charged with attempted criminal homicide, aggravated assault, aggravated assault by vehicle, recklessly endangering another person, simple assault and reckless driving.

Thompson had his preliminary arraignment the following day before Magisterial District Judge William Maruszczak, who set bail at $500,000 cash. Thompson was then remanded to the Montgomery County Correctional Facility after failing to post bail. His next court appearance is a preliminary hearing in front of Magisterial District Judge Ed Levine on Dec. 21 at 10 a.m.

(Editor's note: All suspects and defendants are innocent until proven guilty. Should the defendant choose to issue a public statement, or is later found not guilty or has the charges dropped, we will update this article accordingly.)