A North Carolina physician is facing charges after authorities say he fired shots at a Jeep on a Virginia interstate during a road rage confrontation, wounding two sisters , one of them a young girl.
Dr. Richard T. Arriviello, 61, has been charged with malicious shooting into an occupied vehicle, maliciously causing bodily harm to another with intent to maim, and use of a firearm while committing a felony.
The shooting took place shortly before 9 a.m. Saturday on I-77, roughly 3 miles north of the Virginia-North Carolina line, according to a Virginia State Police press release obtained by Law&Crime.
Troopers said Arriviello opened fire on the Jeep from his Mercedes-Benz. Two sisters inside the vehicle, ages 12 and 20, were struck in the legs, police said. Both were airlifted to a hospital, where authorities described their injuries as non-life-threatening.
Arriviello allegedly drove away from the scene, but troopers caught up with him on I-77 about 15 miles from where the shooting occurred.
Police have not publicly explained what set off the alleged road rage shooting. However, they did issue a reckless driving citation to the driver of the Jeep. It is also not clear whether troopers recovered a weapon. No additional information has been released, and the investigation is ongoing.
According to the North Carolina Medical Board, the suspect operates Family Urgent Care in Monroe, a city located roughly 25 miles southwest of Charlotte. The board said he has no prior criminal convictions or malpractice suits on record.
He has been licensed to practice medicine in North Carolina since 2010, though his LinkedIn profile indicates he has worked as a physician for 30 years.
As of Monday morning, Arriviello was being held at the New River Valley Regional Jail without bond. He is scheduled to appear in court again on Sept. 29.
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