A Seattle man is currently facing multiple charges for allegedly assaulting a key witness in a separate criminal case against an alleged pimp. The relationship between the defendant in the assault case and the defendant in the earlier case has not been reported.

According to court documents, the incident occurred earlier this month when the 21-year-old defendant encountered the 22-year-old witness in the parking lot of a Washington convenience store. He accused the witness of being a "snitch" by testifying in the case against the alleged pimp, and threatened her. The witness became afraid and got into her car to drive away. When her vehicle accidentally collided with the defendant's, however, he reportedly became angry.

The defendant allegedly rushed the witness' vehicle, punched out the driver's side window and opened the door, grabbed the witness by the hair and began punching and kicking her. A passenger in the witness' car was able to put the vehicle in reverse and back the car away quickly, allowing the witness to get out of the defendant's reach. The incident was reportedly captured on video by a nearby surveillance camera.

A few days after the alleged incident, the defendant was arrested and charged with second-degree assault and intimidating a witness.

Following the incident, the witness reportedly considered not testifying against the alleged pimp "as a result of this incident and for fear of further reprisal." The man in that trial is facing charges of robbery, kidnapping, promoting prostitution and promoting the commercial sexual abuse of a minor. The witness did ultimately decide to testify, court records indicate.

Source: The Seattle Times, "Man charged with beating, intimidating witness in pimp trial," Sara Jean Green, Feb. 16, 2012