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Driver, 79, charged in Fair Oaks crash that killed motorcyclist

The northbound left turn lane from West Ox Road to Ox Hill Road in Fair Oaks (via Google Maps)

A 79-year-old driver who crashed into a motorcyclist in Fair Oaks last month, resulting in the biker’s death, is now facing criminal charges.

Detectives have determined that Fairfax resident Mazher Rajput did not yield to a 2018 Yamaha MT07 motorcycle when attempting to turn left from West Ox Road onto Ox Hill Road on Oct. 25, the Fairfax County Police Department said in a news release yesterday.

The allegation deviates slightly from the FCPD’s original characterization of the crash:

Preliminarily, detectives from our Crash Reconstruction Unit determined the operator of the motorcycle, Andrew Dearing, was traveling south on West Ox Road in the left lane. The driver of the Jeep was in the northbound turn lane on West Ox Road waiting to turn left onto Ox Hill Road. The motorcycle proceeded straight through the intersection from the southbound left lane and struck the Jeep. The Jeep continued through the intersection, struck a pedestrian signal and collided with a 2013 Lexus GS350. The Jeep spun around and struck the Lexus a second time before coming to a rest.

Dearing, died at a hospital after being thrown from his bike. He was the 14th non-pedestrian killed in a traffic crash on Fairfax County roads this year, a number that has climbed in the past month to 18.

After further investigation, police now have charged Rajput with failing to yield when turning left and failure to abide by a traffic light.

Magistrate summons have been served to Rajput, who is scheduled to appear in court in January, the FCPD says.

Photo via Google Maps

About the Author

  • Angela Woolsey is the site editor for FFXnow. A graduate of George Mason University, she worked as a general assignment reporter for the Fairfax County Times before joining Local News Now as the Tysons Reporter editor in 2020.