A cyclist was struck by a vehicle in Dana Point when the driver then got out and fatally stabbed him. Hetty Chang reports for the NBC4 News on Feb. 1, 2023.
A bicyclist was struck and fatally stabbed by a driver Wednesday in a horrific attack on Pacific Coast Highway in Orange County, authorities said.
Investigators are attempting to determine a motive for the attack near Crown Valley Parkway in Dana Point.
The man riding a mountain bike was in a bike lane on the coast road when he was struck from behind by the driver of a white Lexus sedan, investigators said. The driver, identified as 39-year-ol Vanroy Evan Smith, then got out of the car and attacked the man, witnesses told investigators.
"A vehicle approached a cyclist at this intersection, struck him, launched him into the intersection," said Sgt. Mike Woodroof, of the Orange County Sheriff's Department. "At that point, the suspect drove around the victim, exited his vehicle, went back to the victim and continued to assault the victim."
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A watch commander with the sheriff's department said the driver was armed with a knife.
"It's pretty crazy and surreal that something like this would happen," Carson Hagmier, who lives nearby, said.
The bicyclist later died at a hospital. He was identified as 58-year-old Michael John Mammone.
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Several witnesses, some of whom detained the driver until authorities arrived, spoke with investigators, who said they are attempting to determine a motive and whether the driver and victim know each other.
"At this time, there is no known connection between the suspect and the victim," the sheriff's department said in a statement.
Smith was booked into the Orange County Jail on suspicion of murder.
