A mother of four is recovering from the injuries she suffered in a Wednesday afternoon attack that left her bruised, bleeding and frightened.

Karalie Red Old Man was driving her daughter from piano practice to the West Mount Pleasant Arena where her husband and three other children were at hockey practice. “We had to split up to get to both of the activities for the children.”

Red Old Man says she was travelling southbound on 4 Street NW, near the 40 Avenue NW intersection, in her Dodge Caravan at around 5:20 p.m. when she changed lanes, unaware of a speeding vehicle in her blind spot.

“When I did my shoulder check and my mirror check, it looked safe to do so, so I proceeded to drive into the left lane,” recalled Red Old Man. “When I was halfway between both lanes,  I saw a silver vehicle speeding really fast towards me and trying to pass but I was already in the lane.”

“They got mad and he started beeping his horn at me because he couldn’t pass.”

Red Old Man says the driver followed close to her rear bumper for a short distance before the car entered the right lane. “He was driving right beside me trying to get into the left lane and trying to push me into oncoming traffic.”

The driver of the car returned to the left lane behind Red Old Man’s minivan when the vehicles entered the playground zone near St. Joseph Elementary Junior High School. Red Old Man says she had slowed her minivan below the posted speed limit when she encountered a stopped vehicle waiting to make a left hand turn.

“I ended up having to stop behind them and I kind of stopped quick and that’s when he rear-ended me.”

The minivan driver continued to West Mount Pleasant Arena and the driver of the car followed. When Red Old Man parked, the driver of the car stopped his vehicle behind the minivan.

“I tried to reverse so he couldn’t block me in,” said Red Old Man. “Their vehicle was parked right behind me and that’s when I hit them with the back of my vehicle.” She says her minivan struck the car on its passenger side near the door.

“They got out of their vehicle and they were yelling and telling me to get out and were punching my windows on both sides,” said Red Old Man. “He was telling me I hit him twice and I told him ‘No, I didn’t hit you’ and ‘You were the one that tried to sideswipe me into oncoming traffic, you were the one that rear-ended me’.”

Red Old Man says she attempted to partially roll down her window but the window was automatic and fully opened. While Red Old Man turned to check on her daughter, one of the men reached into the vehicle.

“He pulled my hair,” recalled Red Old Man. “He pulled my head out of the vehicle and I wasn’t able to fight back because my arms and my body were still in the vehicle.”

 “He proceeded to grab my head in the back and he kept banging and smashing my face on the vehicle.”

Red Old Man says her assailant’s passenger, who she believes to be the man’s brother, and he daughter both yelled for the attack to end. “He wouldn’t stop.”

The man attempted to remove Red Old Man from her minivan.

“I grabbed a hockey stick because he was throwing me around all over the place and he was punching me and I wasn’t sure what to do and there was no one around to help me at the time,” said Red Old Man. “He had the hockey stick and I was holding onto the hockey stick and we were fighting over it. Somehow, he got the hockey stick away from me and he started smashing out my windows on the driver’s side while my daughter was still in the vehicle.”

Red Old Man’s husband left the arena and discovered his wife was being attacked.  

“He pulled that guy off me,” said Red Old Man of her husband’s actions. “That guy tried to hit my husband and my husband was trying to ask him what was going on and what happened. He wouldn’t talk. He was throwing punches at my husband.”

Red Old Man says her husband overpowered her attacker prompting the attacker’s brother to join in. “I tried to pull his brother off of my husband but he ended up throwing me to the ground too.”

The injured woman tried to take a photograph of the car’s licence plate. “The guy that assaulted me came after me, he left my husband. He tried to take my phone away from me.”

A group had gathered around the parking lot fight and calls were placed to 911. The driver of the car and his passenger drove from the scene prior to the arrival of police.

“My mouth was bleeding and there was blood all over. They chipped my tooth and they broke my glasses. I needed stitches on my mouth, on my lip,” said Red Old Man of her injuries.

The injured woman was transported to hospital where she underwent treatment and was released.

The suspects are described as:

  • Males with olive-toned skin
  • Having black or dark brown hair
  • Believed to be in their 20s
  • Between 170 and 180 cm (5’7” to 5’10”) tall
  • Possibly brothers

The suspect vehicle is believed to be a silver BMW two-door car with an Alberta licence plate. The car likely sustained significant damage to the passenger side during Red Old Man’s attempt to drive away.

The incident has shaken Red Old Man. “I’m scared to go outside. All kinds of thoughts. I’m scared they might come after me. Try to find me and do something worse.”

Anyone with information about the road rage incident, the identities of the suspects or the location of the suspect vehicle, is asked to contact the Calgary Police Service, 403-266-1234, or Crime Stoppers.