Car Crash Leads to Arrests of 3 Teen-Agers in Shooting on Freeway

Seconds after a Canoga Park woman was shot in the head during a traffic dispute on the Ventura Freeway, her car careened into the vehicle driven by her attackers and caused it to flip over several times, resulting in the arrest of three teen-agers, Los Angeles police said Monday.

Bobbi Viloria, 23, was in extremely critical condition following the 7:45 p.m. Sunday attack in the westbound lanes of the freeway near Vineland Avenue in North Hollywood, Detective Mike Coffey said. A passenger who was not injured in the shooting managed to steer Viloria’s car off the freeway, but not before it bumped the alleged gunmen’s car and sent it tumbling across several lanes of traffic.

Taken into custody were two Burbank men, Edward Shores, 18, and Man Nguyen, 19, and a 17-year-old boy, Lt. Michael Ranshaw said. All were being held without bail on suspicion of attempted murder. All were treated for minor injuries.

Two handguns were found in the teen-agers’ car, Coffey said.

According to police, Viloria and passenger Chae Tubtimpet, 24, of Las Vegas were heading west on the freeway when they became involved in a traffic dispute with the three youths. Coffey said he did not know what started the dispute.

As Viloria’s car neared Vineland, the carload of teen-agers pulled up on the right side and one of the youths fired four shots from a handgun, Coffey said.

All missed Tubtimpet, but one struck Viloria in the head, according to police.

The driver lost consciousness immediately, and her car swerved into the teen-agers’ car, which flipped over several times before coming to rest in the center of the roadway just before the Hollywood Freeway.

Tubtimpet, meanwhile, seized the wheel and slid partly into the driver’s seat. She steered the car onto the northbound Hollywood Freeway and drove off the freeway a mile farther at Magnolia Boulevard. She called police from a convenience store parking lot.