4 years ago
LEESBURG, Va. - The victim of a road-rage altercation outside Dulles International Airport was acting aggressively before he was struck, prosecutors acknowledged Wednesday in their murder case against a British citizen accused of running over the man with his pickup truck. New details emerged during a court hearing about what led to the confrontation Saturday night that left Charles Vo, 50, of Sterling, Va., dead and Indeshaw Adenaw charged with second-degree murder. Prosecutor Alejandra Hammack said that Vo, who was driving to the airport with his wife and other family members, including children, became angry when he believed Adenaw nearly sideswiped him and forced him to swerve to avoid a collision. Vo later pulled in front of Adenaw and stopped his car in the left lane of the highway leading to the airport. He then got out of his car, and a witness to the altercation said that Vo "approached(Adenaw's) car in an aggressive manner," Hammack said during Wednesday's bond hearing. Authorities initially said that Vo had stopped his car on the shoulder of the highway. Despite Vo's aggression, Hammack said Adenaw, 32, of Gaithersburg, Md., ought to remain locked up while he awaits trial.
She noted that Vo's palm prints were found on the hood of Adenaw's truck. Adenaw "chose to accelerate his car and hit a human being who was helpless," Hammack said. Adenaw's lawyer, John Zwerling, said his client felt threatened when Vo approached. Zwerling noted that Adenaw also had young children as passengers in the car. "He had someone running at his car with something in his hands," which turned out to be a cellphone, Zwerling said after the hearing.
"This person stops his vehicle in front of you in the passing lane of the highway and is running aggressively toward you. What would you do? You can pull out one direction into moving traffic or you can try swerving toward the shoulder to get by. He had no choice." District Court Judge J. Frank Buttery denied bond for Adenaw and ordered him held pending trial, citing Adenaw's foreign citizenship and the seriousness of the charges. Zwerling said he would appeal the judge's decision. Adenaw was born in Ethiopia but is a British citizen who has been in the United States for the last 14 years and holds permanent residency status. A preliminary hearing is set for Sept. 14. Aggressive driving and road rage have been concerns for authorities in the Washington region in recent years, exacerbated by traffic gridlock that frequently heightens motorists' frustration levels.
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