A bicyclist died after being struck by a white Lexus and then allegedly being assaulted in Dana Point on Feb.1, according to OCSD Sgt. Mike Woodroof. Woodroof said. (Photo by OnScene TV)
A 39-year-old driver has been arrested on suspicion of murder in the slaying of a 58-year-old doctor who was riding a bicycle in Dana Point when he was run over, hurled into the air and then stabbed.
Dr. Michael John Mammone was riding his mountain bike northbound on Pacific Coast Highway in the bike lane on Wednesday around 3 p.m. when he was struck from behind at Crown Valley Parkway by Vanroy Evan Smith, 39, of Long Beach, Orange County Sheriff’s officials said. Smith was behind the wheel of a white Lexus.
After driving into Mammone with his car, Smith got out of the vehicle and stabbed the bicyclist, authorities said in a news release.
When deputies arrived, Mammone was lying in the intersection with severe injuries.
Smith, who was being detained by bystanders, was taken into custody. He was later booked into the Orange County Jail on suspicion of murder.
A knife believed to be used in the stabbing that immediately followed the crash was recovered at the scene, the release said.
#BREAKING Surveillance video shows car strike bicyclist at Dana Point intersection before alleged assault; suspect in deadly incident ID'dhttps://t.co/UNmC8kMho7
— ABC7 Eyewitness News (@ABC7) February 2, 2023
Mammone was rushed to Providence Mission Hospital in Mission Viejo, where he was pronounced dead.
Investigators knew of no connection between Smith and Mammone, an emergency medicine doctor who practiced at Providence Mission Hospital in Laguna Beach.
A resident who lives near the scene said he had just passed the intersection on his run when he got home and heard loud screams, then what sounded like bangs.
The man, who requested his name not be published for security reasons, said he ran from his backyard and was near the crosswalk where he saw Mammone lying in the street. Some cars were still driving around the body and through the intersection.
The police and paramedics arrived about two minutes later, he said.
“It was very graphic,” he said, still shaken on Thursday. “People were trying to hold down the other guy, who was yelling. A lady was screaming from her car (regarding Mammone), ‘Help him.’ “
In his South Laguna neighborhood, Mammone would walk his little dog, Harry, said residents on his street, and also liked to surf and mountain bike.
“Harry always ran into our door,” said neighbor Roger Borelli. “He (Mammone) was always coming over to bring him home.”
Borelli called Mammone a “very nice man” who he saw off and on on the block. He said he first met the doctor when his own mother needed help after a fall and he took her to the emergency room where Mammone worked.
“It’s really a shame,” he said. “He did what he could for my mom and asked about her afterward.”
In a statement, Providence Mission Hospital said, “We are stunned by this devastating tragedy. The entire Mission Hospital family is grieving over the loss of an incredible physician and friend.”
At a Long Beach address listed for Smith, nearby residents were horrified to learn about what happened in Dana Point.
Karin Sarmiento did not know Smith or whether he lived in the apartment building but said she felt unsafe after learning that something so “heinous” could be committed by someone who may have been so close by.
“It’s disgusting,” said Sarmiento, 45. “A poor doctor looking to help people. It makes me sick.”
The crime is under investigation. Anyone with relevant information should contact the Orange County Sheriff’s Department at 714-288-6740.
Staff writer Hunter Lee contributed to this report.
Originally published at Erika I. Ritchie