The witness account adds new detail to a road rage case that left one woman and a dog dead.
ANNANDALE, VA — A mother and daughter driving through Northern Virginia say they ran for safety after they saw a man step out near the Capital Beltway and begin stabbing women in another vehicle, a violent scene that ended with one person dead, three others badly hurt and the suspect shot by a state trooper.
Their account is part of a growing picture of what police describe as a sudden road rage attack on Interstate 495 that snarled traffic near Exit 52 and brought drivers to a stop as they called 911. Investigators have identified the woman who died as Michele Adams, 39, of Fairfax, and the suspect as Jared Llamado, 32, of McLean. Authorities have said the three surviving victims suffered serious injuries and that a dog also was stabbed and died.
Sarah Kober said she and her daughter, Jennifer Paxton, were heading home to North Carolina on Sunday when they believe a red SUV struck their vehicle. Kober said they were shaken but stayed focused on moving with traffic. Paxton said she noticed the SUV weaving through lanes as if it were locked onto another car ahead. “We watched him weave in and out of traffic following another car,” Paxton said. The two eventually pulled onto the shoulder behind the SUV, then saw the driver move toward a separate car with several women inside.
Kober said the scene turned chaotic in seconds. She said she feared the man would come back toward them and that they did not know what he would do next. “We did not know and we were terrified,” Kober said. She said she wanted to help but did not feel it was safe. “It’s my daughter. I didn’t want us to get stabbed so I just told her, ‘Run! Run!’” she said. Other motorists, stopped by the traffic backup, began calling 911 as they watched from cars and the roadside, police and news reports said.
Virginia State Police and local reports said the violence followed a crash in the southbound lanes of I-495 near Exit 52 by the Little River Turnpike, in an area between major arteries including Gallows Road and Little River Turnpike and close to the Inova Fairfax Medical Campus. Police have said four women were stabbed. Adams later died from her injuries, and three women, ages 36, 37 and 40, were taken to hospitals with serious injuries. Authorities have not publicly identified the surviving victims. Investigators have also said a dog was stabbed and died, and later reports said the dog belonged to the suspect.
Officials have described the response as fast moving and dangerous for first responders. Police said a Virginia State Police trooper arrived after receiving reports of a road rage incident and found multiple stabbing victims at the scene. The suspect then confronted the trooper while armed with a knife, police said, and the trooper fired in self-defense. Reports have placed the shooting in the early afternoon, with one account stating the trooper opened fire at about 1:17 p.m. Llamado was taken to a hospital and later died, police said. The trooper was not injured.
Investigators have not publicly laid out a clear motive, and police have said they do not believe the violence was connected to terrorism. Virginia State Police have said the women who were wounded did not know the suspect before the encounter on the highway, a detail that undercuts early online speculation that the stabbings involved people who arrived at the crash scene together. Authorities have acknowledged videos posted to social media that appear to show the attack. News organizations have said the footage is too graphic to air in full, but officials have said they are aware of it as part of the investigation.
The case has also drawn attention because of what is known about the suspect’s employment. A State Department spokesperson confirmed that Llamado worked as a foreign service officer, according to local reporting. In one statement carried by a local outlet, a department spokesperson said the agency was aware of the incident and offered condolences to those affected. The State Department has not released additional details about his work, and police have not suggested any connection between his job and the attack.
For drivers who were trapped in the traffic backup, the day left a lasting impression. Kober said the sight of people hurt on the shoulder and the fear that the attacker might turn toward others has stayed with her. She said she and Paxton made a split-second decision to get away, even as they knew someone needed help. Paxton said she tried to understand what she was seeing as it unfolded, but the speed and violence were hard to process. “You hear about it,” Kober said. “But I’ve never seen somebody go crazy like that.”
Virginia State Police have said the trooper who fired will remain on administrative leave while the agency reviews the use of force under its policy, and investigators continue to reconstruct what happened from witness statements, dispatch calls, crash evidence and any video. As of Thursday, March 5, no additional charges were possible because the suspect is dead, and police have not announced a public timeline for releasing a full investigative report.
Author note: Last updated March 5, 2026.