A warrant has been issued for a Niles man facing charges after allegedly pepper-sprayed a family of five in what Howland police are calling a case of road rage.

Authorities learned of the incident after 9-1-1 received a call from a Howland Township woman saying that someone had sprayed something inside their family's Jeep.

The recording of the 9-1-1 call has the sounds of children crying, coughing, and complaining that their eyes were burning.

The investigation led to five counts of assault and one count of criminal damaging have been filed in Warren Municipal Court against 42-year-old Patrick Strohmeyer.

A man who was in the Jeep told police that Strohmeyer fired pepper spray at him, his wife, as well as their 12- and 9-year daughters and 7-year-old son as they were waiting at a red light at East Market Street and Niles Cortland Road on Friday.

According to a police report, the husband told dispatchers that he is a police officer that was off-duty at the time, when Strohmeyer’s Ford Escape allegedly cut off their Jeep on Route 46. The husband said he rolled down his window to say something to Strohmeyer.

Before the husband could speak, he claims Strohmeyer said “Do you want some of this?” and fired pepper spray into the Jeep.

The couple said their children began crying, complaining that their eyes were burning.  The oldest daughter was gagging and vomited, according to the police report.

Police say the 7-year-old son’s face appeared to be red and broken out.

The wife said the orange pepper spray covered the Jeep’s interior, her laptop, and her $500 purse.

The husband told police he got out of the Jeep to get the license plate number of the Ford Escape.

Speaking with Strohmeyer who had pulled into a nearby restaurant, police say he claims that a man got out of a Jeep had allegedly been following his SUV too closely.

Strohmeyer says he used the pepper spray when the man approached him “aggressively”.

A fire rescue squad was called to make sure the family members were not seriously hurt.