CHP: Parents Attacked by Bat-Wielding Assailant in Road Rage Incident As Kids Watch

Two people have been arrested in connection to a violent road rage incident that happened in the Temecula Valley, when a man allegedly severely beat a motorist and his female passenger with a baseball bat during a roadside confrontation near Murrieta.

According to the California Highway Patrol, the assault happened shortly before 7 p.m. Monday on northbound Interstate 15, near the exit for Clinton Keith Road.

“CHP units responded to the scene and located two victims, male and female, whom sustained major blunt force head injuries,” a highway patrol report states.

Witnesses told the CHP that the driver of a white Honda Civic attacked a man and woman who had pulled to the right shoulder of the freeway. According to Officer Mike Lassig, the assailant used an aluminum bat to club the victims over the head. Both suffered major injuries.

“The victims and the witness advised CHP Officers that the suspect struck the male and female victims in the head with a baseball bat while standing outside of their vehicles on the right shoulder,” according to the CHP report.

What’s more, Patch is told that there were two young children sitting in the vehicle when this happened-- one believed to be about 8-months-old, and the other 2-years-old.

The Press Enterprise reports that the Lake Elsinore family had been celebrating the 2-year-old’s birthday when the confrontation occurred, and had just picked up a birthday cake for the child.

There was no mention of what might have triggered the assault, though Patch is told that CHP officials believe it did stem from a road rage incident.

The suspect and his female companion fled the location moments before CHP units arrived, Lassig said.

However, the agency tracked down two people early Tuesday morning who they believe are responsible for the attack.

20-year-old Gabriel Elijah Bowker and 29-year-old Guadalupe Bowker-Cadena were arrested shortly after 1 a.m. in connection to the assault, according to CHP officials and jail booking logs. Gabriel Bowker was arrested on charges of assault with a deadly weapon and attempted murder, while Guadalupe Bowker-Cadena was arrested for being an accessory and attempted murder, jail records indicate.

Both were being held at the Southwest Detention Center on $1 million bail, according to records.

The victims were transported to Inland Valley Medical Center in Wildomar for treatment. Their conditions were not immediately known.

Anyone with information about the attack was asked to call the CHP’s Temecula office at (951) 506-2000.

(Image via Shutterstock)