Police Seek Suspects After ‘Extreme’ BC Road Rage Attack Leaves Couple Hospitalized

RCMP in Mission, B.C. are asking the public to help locate a male and female suspect in a road rage incident that sent a young couple to hospital Sept. 8. Mission RCMP handout photo

A young couple were sent to hospital with serious injuries after being beaten with a baseball bat upon exiting a Tim Hortons drive-thru in British Columbia’s Lower Mainland over the weekend.

Police are on the lookout for two suspects thought to be involved in the Sept. 8 road rage incident that left a 21-year-old female and a 20-year-old male with “significant but non-life-threatening injuries,” Mission RCMP said in a Sept. 9 press release.

The couple, who were driving a grey Honda Civic, honked their horn at the occupants of a black Chevrolet Malibu in front of them in the Tim Hortons line shortly after 10 a.m. because the vehicle was not moving forward, police said.

After the Malibu exited the drive-thru, the occupants waited for the Civic to exit and drove alongside the vehicle so the female occupant of the Malibu could throw her coffee cup at the other car, police said.

The Malibu followed the Civic for roughly two kilometres to an intersection where the driver and passenger got out of their vehicle and assaulted both occupants of the Civic with a baseball bat, before getting back into the Malibu and driving off, police said. The Malibu was later located unoccupied and was seized by police.

“This appears to have been an extreme case of road rage,” Cpl. Harrison Mohr said in the press release. “I’m sure we’ve all seen someone in a drive-through lane give a little honk to let the person in front know they can move up. No one expects to be assaulted as a result of it. We wish both victims a full and speedy recovery, and are working on locating and arresting the suspects.”

Images circulating on social media show the female victim in the hospital with swollen, blackened eyes, and cuts and bruises covering her face. Another photo shows bruising on her back.

The post by the victim’s sister says the couple, who lives in Mission, sustained “a huge amount of trauma” and have “a bit of a recovery ahead.”

“My sister is the sweetest girl ever and is not into any trouble and never has been. Her boyfriend also is the sweetest guy. Please keep my sister and her boyfriend in your thoughts at this time,” reads the post which also alleges the attackers were in an Alberta-registered vehicle.

Police have identified the suspects, but also released photos of the pair “in hopes of locating them as soon as possible,” the police press release says.

One suspect is described as a black male in his 30s, with a medium build, and a full beard. The other suspect is a white female, in her 30s, with short light blonde hair, a sleeve tattoo on her left arm, and a tattoo encircling her right thigh.

The RCMP is asking witnesses of the assault or those with information about the suspects to call the Mission detachment.