Suspect In Northridge Road Rage Shooting Captured in Las Vegas
NORTHRIDGE (CBSLA) – A man suspected of shooting and critically wounding a driver in an act of road rage in Northridge back in March has been captured after first escaping authorities during a pursuit.
David Phouanesavath was apprehended in Las Vegas, Los Angeles police reported Tuesday. He faces attempted murder charges.
Phouanesavath is accused of shooting another driver on the morning of March 25.
According to police, Phouanesavath was driving a pickup truck which was involved in a road rage incident with a sedan that began on the southbound 405 Freeway. The victim exited the freeway at the Nordhoff Street exit and pulled over on Haskell Avenue, just south of Parthenia Street.
As the victim was getting out of his sedan, the suspect, who had followed him, pulled up alongside and shot him several times before speeding away. The shooting was caught on surveillance video.
The victim was taken by ambulance to a local hospital in critical condition. He survived.
Following an LAPD news conference on April 22 regarding the shooting, a second driver came forward claiming to have been involved in a road rage incident with the same suspect in northern L.A. County in which the suspect had also pulled out a gun. The driver had snapped a photo of the suspect's vehicle and written down the license plate, police said.
Investigators determined he was the same man who had committed the Northridge shooting and identified him as Phouanesavath.
On April 26, an FBI/LAPD task force located Phouanesavath, prompting a pursuit. However, he escaped, police said. He was later captured in Las Vegas. It's unclear exactly when he was taken into custody.
Anyone who believes they were involved in road rage incidents involving Phouanesavath should call police at 818-832-0609.