From [HERE] Police have arrested a white man suspected of fatally shooting a Black 18-year-old driver Bianca Roberson, in a fit of road rage because, a prosecutor said, he “didn’t want her to merge into a lane of traffic.”
David Desper, 28, is charged with first- and third-degree murder, possession of an instrument of crime and reckless endangering, according to Philadelphia ABC affiliate WPVI. He surrendered to authorities around 2 a.m. Sunday, ending a three-state manhunt.
Hogan said that because Desper was charged with a capital offense, no bail would be set. He was arraigned early Sunday and remanded to Chester County Prison.
Hogan said that a dented and faded red Chevy Silverado C1500, matching the physical description of the vehicle recorded in videos, was registered to Desper and recovered at 58 Huntington Farm Drive in Glen Mills.
The firearm and truck were found at separate locations, the D.A. said.
Hogan said a crucial piece of evidence actually came from the body of the recent Rustin High School graduate. Fragments of a .40-caliber bullet consistent with being fired from a Smith and Wesson .40-caliber semi-automatic handgun were discovered.
Police executed a search of Desper’s residence, and a .40-caliber handgun was found in the defendant’s bedroom, Hogan said. In a nearby trash can, .40-caliber ammunition was discovered, the D.A. added.
Hogan said Desper purchased the gun legally on Nov. 5, 2015, and had a permit to carry the firearm.
Hogan referred to the confrontation as a “savage, senseless and brutal act,” noting the victim was “gunned down because somebody didn’t want to give way” on a roadway.
The district attorney said the young teen driver was doing something residents do routinely “thousands of times every day.”
Roberson was trying to merge at the 0.1-mile marker of the Route 100 Bypass at Route 202, when she engaged the suspect. She was killed instantly by a single bullet to the left side of the head.
“It is the exact same thing that all of us do every day — merging safely,” Hogan said. “The act of pulling a gun, aiming a gun and being able to shoot someone in the head from one vehicle to another is a calculated act.”
The shooting occurred during rush hour on Wednesday, as Bianca Nikol Roberson was returning home from a shopping trip for college clothes.
The teen and another driver started to merge into the same lane, “jostling for the position” on Route 100 in West Goshen Township, more than 30 miles from Philadelphia, said Michael Noone, first assistant district attorney for the Chester County District Attorney’s Office. Roberson’s vehicle veered from the roadway and crashed into a tree, police said in a statement.
Hogan noted the massive law enforcement effort that unfolded soon after the fatal encounter, which occurred 5:30 Wednesday afternoon. The D.A. said 20 police officers and staffers from the District Attorney’s office worked around-the-clock during the four-day investigation, launching a manhunt that captured the attention of the nation, even being covered by the nightly network news.
“We looked at all of the red pickup trucks across the region and everyone with a gun permit,” Hogan said.
The D.A. said that the homicide investigation will continue until “justice is done” for Bianca Roberson.
Roberson’s father, Rodney Roberson, said the family was excited that his daughter was going away to Jacksonville University in Florida to study psychology. She had set her sights on a FBI career.