CASTRO VALLEY — A weekend road rage confrontation ended with one person dead and another arrested on suspicion of murder, authorities said.
It all happened Saturday when two cars crashed about 7:30 p.m. in the area of Wilbeam Avenue and Norbridge Avenue, according to a statement from Alameda County Sheriff’s Office spokesperson Sgt. Roberto Morales.
Authorities identified the dead man as 49-year-old Jason Elola. He died after being rushed to a hospital.
In an online fundraiser, Elola’s wife, Gabrielle, said Jason Elola was a father to nine children and called him “the heart of our family — a kind, generous and loving man who brought laughter and warmth wherever he went.”
Morales said deputies later arrested 37-year-old Martin W. Davis Jr. and took him to Santa Rita Jail in Dublin. He remained in custody there without bail early Wednesday on suspicion of murder, according to jail records.
The sheriff’s office is the lead agency on the investigation, but it was the California Highway Patrol who first responded to Saturday’s crash scene. Morales said CHP officers went to a reported crash between two vehicles that “may have stemmed from a road rage incident.”
Once there, they found Elola injured at the scene. Medics treated him there, before an ambulance took him to a hospital where he died.
After the crash, Davis Jr. contacted the CHP’s non-emergency line to report the incident and his involvement, Morales said. The CHP told him to return to the scene. Morales added that once there, Davis Jr. cooperated with the investigation.
The sheriff’s office then took over as the lead investigating agency. Morales said they determined that Davis Jr. and Elola had an unspecified “physical confrontation” stemming from road rage and arrested Davis Jr.
The sheriff’s office is still investigating and requested the public’s help. They asked anyone who may have witnessed the road rage incident or captured it on video to contact Det. Jawad Hammad at 510-459-8095 or the sheriff office’s tip line at 510-667-3622.