| Submit your comments on this article |
| Home Front: WoT |
| Cab driver attacked by passenger on Sterling Highway in Alaska |
| 2006-07-06 |
| From Channel 2 news in Anchorage. Wednesday, July 5, 2006 - by Jill Burke Anchorage, Alaska - An Anchorage cab driver survived a brutal attack yesterday. The driver’s passenger attacked him with a box cutter while he was driving on the highway. Clue #1, a box cutter was used in the crime. This is a frightening story that’s also somewhat bizarre. But not to Rantburgers. According to troopers a man asks this cab driver to take him to a Denali hotel. When the cabbie goes to Denali Street in Anchorage, the passenger indicated he meant Denali Park. A hundred or so miles north, toward Mt. McKinley. And then the driver learned that the passenger wanted to drive away from Anchorage to stay at a hotel in the mountains. That man, 19-year-old Samir Ahmad, ended up talking the cabbie into driving toward Homer. Which is about 240 road miles south of Anchorage. Behind the wheel was 57-year-old Ron Estrella, driving an Anchorage-based Alaska Cab. According to Alaska State Troopers, around 3:00 yesterday afternoon at about Mile 101 of the Sterling Highway, Estrella ran Ahmad’s credit card which was declined. Bad move on Estrella's part. Should have run the card first before such a major voyage in a city cab. And it was at that point, while the cab was reportedly driving down a hill on the Sterling Highway toward Homer, that Ahmad reached from the back seat and stabbed Estrella in the neck. “It was a box cutter, the kind where you can click the blade out to different lengths and he only had it out just a very short distance so fortunately it didn’t cut very deep,” said Greg Wilkinson, Alaska State Troopers. Estrella's lucky that the guy was stupid. We’re told Estrella fought Ahmad off and got the box cutter away from him while passersby called troopers. Estrella was taken to the hospital, treated, and released today. Meanwhile, Ahmad is in jail in Kenai, charged with attempted murder. Clue #2. Samir Ahmad is a name not common in Puerto Rico. Ahmad doesn’t appear to live in Alaska, and he just arrived here from Florida two weeks ago. He apparently told the cab driver he was from Puerto Rico. But the cabbie, who speaks Spanish, told troopers Ahmad didn’t seem to speak Spanish very well. So his background remains a bit of a mystery. Some friggin mystery. That is an arabic name, Jillie. Start diggin'. There are some weird people on the long stretch of road between Anchorage and Homer. My friend Springfield travels with me on such road trips. |
| Posted by:Alaska Paul |
| #4 Ahmed is Gaza Rican. |
| Posted by: ed 2006-07-06 19:06 |
| #3 Springfield, 1911-A1 breed. |
| Posted by: Alaska Paul 2006-07-06 18:47 |
| #2 Springfield, a Brittany Spaniel maybe? |
| Posted by: 6 2006-07-06 18:25 |
| #1 I'll tell the Captain to watch for puertorriqueños named Ahmad during her stay, Alaska Paul. Thanks for the heads up. |
| Posted by: Seafarious 2006-07-06 16:39 |