Share and Follow
Inset: Rudy Sanchez (Maricopa County Jail). Background: The area in Arizona where Sanchez allegedly shot a female driver in a road rage incident (Google Maps).
A 20-year-old man in Arizona has been indicted by a grand jury after allegedly shooting a woman during a road rage incident last month. The man, reportedly upset because he felt “disrespected” when the woman cut him off without apologizing, has been charged with multiple felonies.
The grand jury handed down an indictment against Rudy R. Sanchez Jr., accusing him of several serious offenses. These include one count each of drive-by shooting and discharging a firearm into a structure, along with two counts of aggravated assault, as announced by authorities.
The Maricopa County Attorney’s Office detailed the incident in a press release, stating that on October 11, Sanchez allegedly shot the woman in the leg while they were both driving near Peoria Avenue and Loop 101. After the shooting, Sanchez reportedly drove away from the scene.
According to a report from Phoenix CBS affiliate KTVK, the victim recounted that she was stopped behind Sanchez’s BMW at a red light on Peoria Avenue. When the light turned green, Sanchez didn’t move, prompting her to honk. Sanchez then drove slowly, leading the victim to change lanes and pass him.
Once next to the victim’s car, Sanchez allegedly began shouting profanities and asked, “What do you want me to do?” The victim replied, “You were going too slow.” She averted her eyes, at which point Sanchez is accused of firing a shot through her car door, hitting her left leg, before fleeing the scene.
In the early morning hours of Oct. 15, Peoria SWAT and members of the department’s Criminal Investigation Division located Sanchez’s vehicle at an apartment complex near 47th Street and McDowell Road in Phoenix. At about 5:34 a.m., the SWAT team observed Sanchez exiting the apartment complex and getting into his car, which is when he was taken into custody without incident, according to the arrest report.
Police said Sanchez was in possession of a 9 mm handgun and a fired cartridge casing was allegedly recovered from inside his BMW.
Following his arrest, Sanchez allegedly made several incriminating statements.
“While waiting for a transport unit, Rudy Sanchez made an unsolicited admission to [a detective],” the police report states. “Rudy Sanchez stated to [the detective], ‘Do you want to know why I did it?’ He then went on to tell [the detective] that he did it because he felt disrespected and he was mad. He said that he wanted the female driver to apologize to him for cutting him off and she didn’t, so he shot her.”
KTVK reported that the gunshot “severely shattered” the victim’s femur, which was surgically repaired with a metal rod. However, medical experts reportedly said the victim could still “potentially lose her left leg.”
Sanchez is currently being held in the Maricopa County Jail in lieu of $250,000 cash-only bond, records show. He is currently scheduled to go to trial on Feb. 26, 2026.