Felon Charged with Pointing Gun at Semi Driver in Saint Paul
BY MN CRIME STAFF
A Saint Paul man is charged after authorities say he pointed a handgun at a semi driver during a road rage incident on Interstate 35E last week.
Jordan Alexander Cate, 39, faces felony charges including threats of violence and two counts of illegal possession of a firearm or ammunition stemming from the incident on Jan. 28.
According to the criminal complaint, a Minnesota state trooper was dispatched around 11:55 a.m. to investigate a gun-pointing report on southbound Interstate 35E near the Highway 52 exit.
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A semi driver told the trooper he was nearly struck by the driver of a white SUV who changed lanes near Maryland Avenue. He said he honked to alert the driver, then watched the SUV swerve away, slow down and get behind his truck. When the semi changed lanes, the SUV driver pulled alongside him, the complaint says.
The semi driver reported the SUV’s front passenger window was down and that the driver slowed as it paced the truck. The driver then raised a pistol in his right hand, pointed the barrel at the semi driver and shook it up and down while mouthing unknown words at him. The semi driver said he feared he was going to be shot and described the gun as a black semi-automatic pistol that looked like a Glock. He described the driver as a white man with a darker complexion, light facial hair and a lean build, giving the SUV’s license plate number.
The trooper ran the plate and learned it was registered to a white 2013 GMC Yukon. A KOPS alert was then issued for the vehicle.
Around 1:15 p.m., Saint Paul police located the SUV in the 900 block of Payne Avenue. Cate was found sitting in the driver’s seat and, according to the complaint, was smoking marijuana. Cate admitted he had been involved in a driving altercation with a semi and said he hoped police had arrested the other driver for “nearly running him off the road.” He denied pointing a gun and claimed he only gave the semi driver the middle finger. Cate refused to give consent to search the vehicle.
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Authorities say Cate matched the physical description provided by the semi driver and a trooper sent the semi driver a photo of the SUV, which was a match. The trooper also sent a photo of Cate, who the semi driver also positively identified as the person who pointed the gun, according to the complaint.
Troopers later searched the SUV under a warrant and reported finding a black Taurus semi-automatic .45-caliber pistol in the center console. The pistol was loaded and investigators also found multiple documents bearing Cate’s name inside the vehicle.
The vehicle’s registered owner told troopers he sold the SUV to Cate through Facebook Marketplace in August 2025 and took a photo of Cate’s driver’s license at the time of the sale. The registered owner said he had never owned a handgun. Cate later told troopers the SUV was his but that the title had not yet been transferred.
Cate is charged with illegal possession of a firearm and illegal possession of ammunition due to his prior felony convictions. He also faces a felony threats of violence charge.
Court records show Cate’s criminal history includes a 2017 conviction for second-degree assault involving a firearm and a felony fifth-degree drug conviction. Prosecutors provided notice they intend to introduce evidence from the 2017 assault case, in which Cate retrieved a firearm during an argument and shot his roommate in the thigh at a residence on the 900 block of Victoria Street North in Saint Paul. The victim survived but the bullet came within centimeters of hitting his femoral artery.
If convicted, Cate now faces up to 15 years in prison on each firearm or ammunition possession count and up to five years in prison on the threats of violence charge.
