In a bizarre act of senseless violence ending in instant karma, a man who decided to randomly attack and murder a cyclist in Las Vegas, Nevada, lost his life immediately after he fell out of the window of a speeding van just after the cowardly act. Michelle Weissman, age 55, was enjoying a bike ride on Sunday morning when a man sitting in the passenger seat of a burgundy van decided to lean out of the window and push her to the pavement, reports KVVU-TV.
However, the man later identified as 20-year-old Giovanni Barajas fell out of the window and skid on the asphalt for about 150 feet before a traffic light stopped his body. It’s believed he died instantly upon impact, according to the Las Vegas Sun. Meanwhile, his victim was declared dead at the scene due to injuries she sustained from her fall.
“It’s an absolute senseless act,” Homicide Squad Lt. Raymond Spencer said Sunday. “There’s no reason behind this that I can tell you why it occurred, other than complete stupidity.”
Police allege Rodrigo Cruz was driving a van on Hollywood Blvd. near Wildcat Ave. at 7:30 a.m. on Oct. 25 when his passenger, identified as Giovanni Medina Barajas, stuck his body outside of the van to hit a woman riding her bike.https://t.co/LhSh6XxVEb
— FOX5 Las Vegas (@FOX5Vegas) October 27, 2020
On Monday, Police arrested the driver of the van, Rodrigo Cruz, who was charged with two felony counts of failure to stop at the scene of a crash along with a parole violation connected to a 2016 robbery case. Cruz, age 22, allegedly denied that he had driven in a manner intended to allow Barajas to push Weissman.
PICTURED: Cyclist, 56, was pushed off her bike and killed by a prankster, 20, who leaned out of a fast-moving van – before HE fell out of the vehicle and died. Michelle Weissman was killed when 20-year-old Giovanni Barajas pushed https://t.co/Tx1pbJAHbM
— Jodi 💅 (@Jodi_Ann_Arias) October 28, 2020
He claimed that the reason he didn’t stop after his friend fell out of the van’s window was “because he was scared since he was on parole and didn’t think [Barajas] was hurt,” police said.
JUST IN: The Clark County Coroner’s Office has identified the man that intentionally pushed a woman off her bicycle which resulted in her death, and his, as 20-year-old Giovanni Medina Barajas. New details⬇️ #8NN https://t.co/dnxnALCW4g
— 8 News NOW (@8NewsNow) October 27, 2020
According to police, Cruz said that his friend “was always doing stupid stuff.”
So the family of the asshole that killed my aunt is raising money… saying he died in a car accident…no he died killing my aunt..rest in hell Giovanni Medina Barajas
— heather hicks (@heatherreda) October 31, 2020
Cruz is also being charged with murder, although it looks like the Clark County District Attorney’s Office is not likely to prosecute him, reports the Sun. The driver is scheduled to appear in court on Wednesday. For more on this tragic story, you can also view the video below.