Man Accused in O.C. Toll Road Knife Slaying Is Free

A man once described by prosecutors as a member of the Hells Angels who attacked twin brothers -- killing one -- on an Orange County toll road offramp had murder charges against him dismissed Monday.

Rodrigo Jose Requejo, 31, was released late Monday from the Theo Lacy Branch Jail in Orange after three witnesses told investigators that the supposed victims had instigated a fight. Requejo had been held without bail since Dec. 22.

“Based on what they told us, it appears that the Ammann brothers, Jason and Justin, were the aggressors in this case,” Assistant Dist. Atty. Mary Anne McCauley said. “It appears Mr. Requejo’s use of force was appropriate in defending himself.”

Interviewed outside jail shortly after his release, Requejo said: “It was a nightmare when I got in here, and now it’s a dream come true. I had faith in the justice system.”

Earlier, prosecutors had said Requejo instigated the fight that led to the death after he and the Ammann brothers cut each other off on the southbound Foothill/Eastern toll road on Dec. 21. After the men pulled onto the Santa Margarita Parkway offramp, left their vehicles and began arguing, authorities alleged, Requejo shouted, “This is the Hells Angels!” before stabbing the 23-year-old brothers, killing Justin and seriously injuring Jason.

“He loved everyone,” Sylvia Ammann later said of her dead son, who managed a Goodyear store in Tustin and was to be married this summer. “He wouldn’t hurt a fly.”

Requejo could have faced a death sentence if convicted, because invocation of the Hells Angels had resulted in special charges being filed.

On Monday, however, McCauley painted a far different picture of the incident.

She said that according to witnesses, the brothers started following Requejo on the toll road about 9 p.m., flashing their truck’s lights and cutting him off. When both vehicles stopped, the brothers pounded on Requejo’s pickup with their fists and tried to pull him out.

Requejo left his truck from the passenger side and exchanged punches with Justin Ammann, McCauley said. When Jason joined in to help his brother, Requejo stabbed them both.

Jason Ammann expressed disbelief over Requejo’s release. “This is shocking to me,” he said. “That guy was the first one out of the car. He was the one to attack.”

However, a neighbor of Requejo said he wasn’t surprised about his friend’s exoneration.

“We thought [he was innocent] all along,” said Richard Linss, 43. “He’s not that type of guy. Every time I talk to him he’s really laid-back and easy going.... He wasn’t a violent type of guy. He had to have been provoked.”

Prosecutors said Monday they once believed Jason Ammann’s account because Requejo fled after the fight and later told deputies he hadn’t been on the toll road that evening.

“He didn’t stay and give his version,” McCauley said. “It made it much more difficult to get to the bottom of this. Maybe he thought that the sheriff’s deputies wouldn’t believe him.”

McCauley said there are no plans to charge Ammann with a crime.

Requejo, who lives in Rancho Santa Margarita, said he was told he was to be released just 10 minutes before he was freed.

Times staff writer David Haldane contributed to this report.