A passenger riding along Interstate 66 in Fairfax County was rushed to the hospital Tuesday night after gunfire tore through the rear window of the vehicle they were traveling in. The other three people inside the SUV walked away unhurt, but the shooter remains at large as investigators comb through what happened on one of Northern Virginia's busiest commuter corridors.
Loud Bang, Then a Bullet Hole
The incident unfolded around 8:14 p.m. Tuesday, when a Toyota RAV4 was traveling eastbound on I-66 near the Nutley Street Interchange and the people inside heard a loud bang, according to WJLA. One of the passengers said they had been hit and was taken to the hospital, the station reported. That passenger is expected to be okay, while all others inside the car were not injured.
Troopers later found a bullet hole in the car's left rear window, confirming that the loud noise the occupants heard was gunfire striking the vehicle as it moved along the highway. The station's report does not specify where the shot came from or how many rounds were fired.
Search for a Shooter Continues
Virginia State Police said the investigation remains ongoing, and InsideNoVa reported that troopers are searching for the gunman who shot at the passing SUV. That outlet described the injured rider as a backseat passenger who was treated at an area hospital for non-life-threatening injuries, while the RAV4's three other occupants were unhurt.
No suspect description, weapon information, or motive has been released, and it remains unclear exactly where the gunfire originated relative to the moving vehicle. For now, the case is an open one, with state police continuing to piece together what happened along a stretch of I-66 that carries thousands of drivers through Fairfax County every evening.
