Two Arrested After Deaf Indiana Man Shot Dead During Suspected Road Rage Incident: Police

Law enforcement officials in Indiana have announced the arrest of two people in connection with an apparent road rage shooting that left a deaf man dead.

Investigators said 35-year-old Ryan Hawkins was shot in the neck on May 1 as he was driving on Interstate 65, according to court documents obtained by WRTV.

Hawkins reportedly was thrown from his Hyundai Elantra as it left the highway and crashed into a pond, and investigators found bullet holes in the side of his car.

According to witnesses, Hawkins appeared to be trying to speed away from the suspect’s Ford Explorer, but the SUV sped up next to him, and the driver opened fire.

The eyewitness accounts and traffic cameras helped investigators zero in on the SUV and its alleged driver.

According to an arrest report obtained by WISH-TV, 24-year-old Andre Briski was identified as the driver of the vehicle and charged with murder and possession of a firearm by a prohibited person.

Briski allegedly told police that he did it, according to the report.

“I’ll tell you right here, I did it,” he allegedly said, cops wrote. “I didn’t mean to, I was afraid that we were going to crash and die.”

Briski told detectives that Hawkins was brake-checking him, but when police told him eyewitnesses didn’t back up his story he refused to talk further and demanded a lawyer.

Never miss a story — sign up for the Front Page Detectives newsletter. Be on the scene the moment news breaks.

The second person arrested in the case, Shawna Rowland, was charged with assisting a criminal and obstruction of justice, officials said.

Hawkins, the victim, was a 2013 graduate of Gallaudet University, the only liberal arts college for deaf and hard of hearing people in the United States, according to WISH-TV.

“Mr. Hawkins was an active and involved student and a loyal alumnus," the school said in a statement. "His sister is an alumna, and his brother is a current student. We mourn with his family, and wish them peace and comfort.”