In a shocking road rage incident in a rural south Auckland neighbourhood, a Tesla driver turned violent aggressor when he launched a savage assault on a dog walker, leaving him grievously wounded on the roadside. The pedestrian had simply gestured to the speeding driver to slow down.
The aggressor, 43 year-old Darryn Clarke, wielded a samurai sword against the unsuspecting pedestrian, causing bone-deep injuries in a brutal frenzy of violence. Clarke was set to be sentenced in Manukau District Court after admitting guilt to the assault that his own family bore witness to from their seats inside his Tesla on the early afternoon of 5th January this year.
The victim, an unidentified 55-year-old owing to court-ordered suppression, was in a critical condition when rushed to the hospital post the assault. Law enforcement stated that the injuries sustained included a deep cut across his neck, toeing the dangerous line of nearly severing his spinal cord.
The gruesome assault left the victim with a broken jaw, severely damaged facial muscles and nerves. The ruthless swing of the sword also tore off a large chunk of flesh and bone from the victim’s left shoulder, which necessitated emergency surgery and skin grafts. In a disturbing aftermath, he continues to have facial drooping and a speech impediment due to the facial injuries.
Described in court documents as a replica, the samurai sword was sheathed when Clarke swung it in a downcast diagonal motion. However, the sheath disintegrated upon impact, causing severe gashes across the victim’s ear, neck, shoulder and hand.
After the horrifying assault, Clarke was quick to abandon the scene and drove off leaving the pedestrian gravely wounded and alone. Bleeding copiously and unable to unlock his cell phone to call for assistance, the victim’s attempts to summon help from a nearby house were unavailing.
Miraculously, his son spotted him lying injured in a ditch whilst driving home from work. He quickly applied emergency first aid to lessen the bleeding and called for an ambulance. Police arrived shortly thereafter.
Clarke was apprehended the following day and was charged with injuring with intent to cause grievous bodily harm, which carries a maximum sentence of 14 years’ imprisonment.
Court documents do not reveal how law enforcement linked the assault to Clarke, but they do highlight that Clarke did not deny his involvement in the incident. He admitted to striking the victim using the sword sheathed and conceded that the incident was a result of “stupid road rage”.
