A father of four remains hospitalized in the ICU after being shot in a road rage shooting on the 5 Freeway.
The victim, Noel Pena, 48, was struck while driving on New Year’s Eve. The bullet entered through his armpit, shattered his collarbone and left fragments in his throat.
“It’s something no one expects,” said Pamela Pena, the victim’s daughter. “Like, I’ve heard about it and I’m like, ‘Wow, people are so ruthless out there doing these types of things.’ It’s not normal, should not be normal, to find out it happened to us.”
On New Year’s Eve, Noel was heading home with his wife, daughter and niece after spending the day at the Sante Fe Springs Swap Meet.
At around 3 p.m., the family was driving back home to East L.A. when they noticed what appeared to be a gray Honda SUV swerve into their lane just north of Carmenita Road in Norwalk. The suspect almost collided with their car.
Noel honked as the suspect driver yelled in his direction. Words were exchanged as Noel drove away but his family said the suspect continued following them in his car.
Suddenly, the suspect passed him on the left-hand side and fired two gunshots toward the driver’s side window.
As Noel felt the bullet strike him, he pulled over to the side of the freeway. He began to feel faint and was losing blood quickly.
“My cousin sitting in the backseat said, ‘I never expected a human to do that to anyone here,’” Pamela said. “She came from Mexico to visit and it was the last thing she expected to happen.”
A nurse happened to be driving by at that moment and pulled over to offer help as Noel lay bleeding on the side of the freeway.
Pamela said the nurse helped control Noel’s bleeding as they waited for ambulances to arrive. He was transported to the hospital in critical condition. Pamela credits the nurse for saving her father’s life.
“He had to get like eight units of blood, I think,” Pamela said. “I didn’t know how much that was until I researched it and that’s basically what one human body has — 8-10 units of blood. Like, how is it possible that he’s here with us today?”
California Highway Patrol said incidents of road rage appear to be happening more often.
“It’s very important not to play into the issue at hand,” advises Alec Pereyda, a CHP officer. “If you feel that you’re part of a road rage incident, don’t instigate the situation, don’t make things worse, just continue on your way.”
Meanwhile, Noel remains hooked up to a breathing tube as he recovers from major surgery. His family is grateful he’s alive but said he faces an uphill battle on the road to recovery.
Noel is the father of four daughters who are hoping to see their dad come home very soon.
“This could happen to anyone,” Pamela said. “It happened to my father who it should not have happened to. He’s such a good guy and he honestly doesn’t deserve this. Be cautious out there because we sadly live in a world where this will happen.”
A GoFundMe page was created to help Noel’s family with medical expenses.
The suspect driver remains at large. Authorities are searching for dash cam footage or video from a Tesla camera taken on Dec. 31 between 3 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. near the Carmenita Road exit.
CHP said the suspect responsible will likely face charges of attempted murder and assault with a deadly weapon.
Authorities are asking anyone who may have witnessed the shooting to call the CHP Santa Fe Springs office at 562-868-0503.