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Elgin road rage death investigation
One man is dead and another is charged with murder after a road rage incident in Elgin on Tuesday night.
ELGIN, Texas - One man is dead and another is charged with murder after a road rage incident in Elgin on Tuesday night.
A witness, who recorded video of the deadly confrontation, told FOX 7 the shooting may be a case of self-defense.
The moment this case of road rage became deadly, Jerry Vaughn thought it was something else.
"Knocked him out," said Vaughn on video he recorded Tuesday evening.
At the time, Vaughn didn't realize what he had actually witnessed.
"I thought it was a fight. Thought he just knocked him out? But later on, I heard that. And I go back and watch the video. Going through my mind is like, man, he really shot him," said Vaughn.
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Road rage on the rise in CTX
As population increases in Central Texas, so do road rage incidents, according to AAA. They say, statewide, there were more than 1,600 crashes caused by road rage in 2022.
The shooting near the intersection of Hwy 290 and County Line Rd. happened Tuesday, July 16, around 7 p.m.
According to a news release from the Elgin Police Department, Fabin Salas shot Joseph Stanczyk. Salas remained at the scene. The gun, a 9 mm semi-automatic, and a bullet fired from it, were recovered, according to Chief Chris Noble.
"Based upon the information gathered at the scene and in consultation with the Travis County District Attorney's Office, it was decided to go ahead and arrest the suspect last night, and charge him with murder," said Chief Noble.
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The shooting happened in the Travis County portion of Elgin, which is why Salas was locked up in Austin and the case is being handled by the Travis County D.A.'s office.
The two men may have first crossed paths near Elgin’s H-E-B shopping center. Salas works at a nearby Domino’s pizza. It’s believed Stanczyk was heading home on the west side of town.
"Witnesses have told us that there was some sort of ongoing confrontation between the two vehicles," said Chief Noble.
A fistfight broke out when traffic came to a stop at County Line Rd. Vaughn and other witnesses told police, Stanczyk got out of his sedan and approached the truck driven by Salas.
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Road rage on the rise in Austin
The search continues for the person who shot a woman to death in her car in north Austin. Detectives believe this incident was the result of road rage; they say they get reports of road rage on a weekly basis.
"To me, he (Salas) didn't have a choice. The guy came up and went to his car, went to his truck. They got out and started squaring off," said Vaughn.
In the video, Stanczyk bends over to pick something off the ground and as he moves up he is shot.
"I couldn't tell if the guy (Stanczyk) dropped something because they looked like they both reached down to the ground. He got up, and then I heard the shot, and now you can see it, but you still can't even tell from the video if you punch him or shot him until you hear (pop) like a door closing," said Vaughn.
As the investigation continued, Chief Noble offered this advice to anyone who comes across an aggressive driver.
"You don't need to engage in confrontation. You know, just back away from it. The best you can. And at the very least, you know, call 911. And, let law enforcement handle that. But don't engage and just be nice and don't engage," said Chief Noble.
It was advice Vaughn wishes was followed Tuesday night.
"He should have stayed in his vehicle, man. I wish he had stayed in his vehicle. I just, sad case," said Vaughn.