SEATTLE — A man who was chased down by motorists after their cars were hit by thrown rocks on Interstate 90 in July 2021 is now out of jail.
Abdinasir Ali Audeer was arrested in July of 2021 and has since spent more than a year behind bars.
On Friday, he was sentenced to time served and unsupervised probation.
According to the King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office, the time Audeer already spent in jail was greater than the time he could have been sentenced under statewide sentencing guidelines.
On July 20, 2021, state troopers arrested Audeer after two victims stopped their vehicle on I-90 near the I-5 interchange and chased him.
According to court documents, 16 people called 911 and four vehicles were hit. Witnesses also saw him pulling items out of his backpack to throw at cars.
Audeer pleaded guilty to two charges of third-degree assault and one charge of third-degree malicious mischief last month.
“Now it will be in the back of my head probably,” said Erika Warner-Court, who drives through the stretch of Interstate 90 between I-5 and the Mount Baker Tunnel regularly.
She said she believes it’s concerning that Audeer’s been released, but doesn’t plan to change her driving habits.
“It would have been nice if they had done the mental health evaluation or any issues he might be experiencing while he was serving time that seems like a much more productive way to spend that time,” said Warner-Court. “I feel for these people but we have to figure out a way to keep them from hurting others and taking out whatever issues they have on us.”
According to sentencing documents, Audeer must also receive a mental health evaluation within 30 days, follow all treatment recommendations and take prescribed medication.
There were 207 reports of objects thrown at cars in King County last year, according to the Washington State Patrol.
©2022 Cox Media Group
