Elderly Road Rage Victim Wants to Confront his Attacker in Court

Elderly Road Rage Victim Wants to Confront his Attacker in Court
Police tape in a stock photo. (Carl Ballou/Shutterstock)
Tom Ozimek
6/26/2019
Updated:
6/26/2019

An 80-year-old man who suffered horrific injuries in what authorities described as a potentially deadly “nonsensical attack” in England this spring said he wants to get a good look at his attacker inside a courtroom.

Paul Eva was crossing a road in southeast London on May 21 when a Metropolitan Police representative cited in a BBC report said he got into a “verbal altercation” with a driver.
In CCTV footage of the incident published by various British media including ITV News, the motorist is seen pulling over, chasing the great-grandfather down, and shoving him violently into what appears to be a brick wall.
Eva was knocked unconscious and, according to Detective Constable Luke Thomson cited by The Independent, suffered “horrific injuries” from the “nonsensical attack which could have cost him his life.”

“There is no place in society for unlawful and aggressive acts such as this,” Thomson added.

Eva sustained multiple injuries including a broken wrist, nose, and cheekbone.

In an interview with ITV, Eva said he “was in a hell of a state—it looked really dreadful.” He added his wife “thought I was dead.”

“I was covered in blood and goodness knows what,” he said, ITV reported. “I had mostly a liquid diet since then because my jaw was broken for a week. I could only have soup and stuff.”

‘I Just Want to See Who This Guy Is’

The Metropolitan police said in a statement that on the day following the attack, 56-year-old John Edward Dugdale turned himself over to the police. He was charged with grievous bodily harm on May 23 and later pleaded guilty.
Eva spoke to Sky News ahead of Dugdale’s scheduled sentencing hearing next month.

He said he intends to be there to see the face of the man who attacked him.

“If I bumped into him in the street, I wouldn’t recognize him,” Eva told Sky News. “I’ve got no idea who he is.”

“When it happened, my most vivid memory was the woman, who was the passenger in the car, glaring at me with pure hatred,” he added.

“I just want to see who this guy is who thought he could behave in such a bloody manner.”

Eva told Sky News he still has not fully recovered from his injuries.

Man Confronts Road Rage Driver Who Swore at Him

A road rage incident in Canada ended with an unexpected reconciliation.

In March 2016, Peter Karanfilis was driving when a motorist cut him off. Not only did the driver overtake him, he also showed Karanfilis his middle finger and shouted swear words.

“This surprised me because I was unaware WHY he did this,” Karanfilis wrote, sharing his confusion on his Facebook page. “My thoughts are because he didn’t use his turn signal, so it was unexpected...”

Karanfilis, a personal trainer, wanted to give the driver a piece of his mind and followed him into a Starbucks.

“I thought, here’s my chance to tell him what I think of his poor manners and disrespect,” Karanfilis wrote.

But once inside the coffee shop, Karanfilis opted for a different tactic when he saw the man.

“I turned around to tell him that it’s his lucky day! ‘What could I buy you? My treat!’,” Karanfilis recounted.

Needless to say, the man was speechless.

“Really?” the man asked him.

Once Karanfilis bought the man a drink, he introduced himself as the driver who he “flipped off” moments ago while on the road.

The man apologized and said that he was “just super stressed.”

After chatting a while, Karanfilis and the man realized that the man’s turn signal was not working. Karanfilis wrote that through this incident, he wants to remind everyone to make peace with others.

“Because we tend to celebrate people getting revenge, or ‘getting what they deserve,’” he wrote. “My question is, when does it end? When does the fighting and anger stop? It’s only when PEACE makes its way in and overcomes.

“Remember, everyone may be going through something that you know nothing about,” he added.

Jocelyn Neo contributed to this report.