Recommended Stories For You<\/h2>\n<\/p><\/div>\n
Having been on the receiving end of help for car trouble, Wilson didn\u2019t hesitate when his boss asked if he\u2019d lend a hand. Besides, he knew his four-wheel-drive Toyota Four-Runner was more suited to the task than his boss\u2019s two-wheel drive truck.<\/p>\n
Before he left the yard, Wilson\u2019s boss suggested that 20-year-old yard hand Hunter Steinbach ride along. Wilson agreed. It was another decision that helped him survive what was about to unfold.<\/p>\n
The four men \u2014\u00a0Wilson at the wheel, Steinbach in the front passenger seat, Madrid in the back passenger seat, and the other man in the back driver\u2019s-side passenger seat \u2014 traveled west onto U.S. Interstate I-70 a couple miles past exit 87.<\/p>\n
There, they found a small passenger vehicle off the road and near the barrier fence that runs alongside the highway. It was too far for Wilson to tow.<\/p>\n
Undeterred, Wilson suggested they attempt to reach the vehicle from a gravel road used to access the oilfield.<\/p>\n
As they circled back around to exit 87 and the oil field road, the men traded small talk.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe talked about buying trucks. We were talking really well, and there was nothing suspicious,\u201d Wilson recalled.<\/p>\n
He was slowing down at a dead end, unable to see the disabled vehicle, when a feeling caused Wilson to reach into the storage compartment on the driver\u2019s side door, where he kept a hunting knife.<\/p>\n
\u201cI felt like something was going to happen. I\u2019m not sure why I felt that. It was just a gut feeling or something,\u201d Wilson said.<\/p>\n
He thought to himself, \u201cWhat do you do? Ask them, \u2018Guys, are you going to try to do something to me?\u2019 Ask them to get out and walk?\u201d<\/p>\n
Instead, he slipped his knife into the front pocket of his hoodie.<\/p>\n
\u201cI slowed down and felt my vehicle shake. He was coming after me. I felt him cut me,\u201d Wilson said.<\/p>\n
Madrid slashed at Wilson\u2019s neck again and again, struggling to cut through the hoodie material to the soft flesh beneath.<\/p>\n
Then, Madrid felt his own stabbing pain as Steinbach used his hunting knife, given to him by his uncle, to launch a counter-attack to defend his friend.<\/p>\n
Struggling to land his blows and under attack himself, Madrid and the man with him exited from the rear driver\u2019s side door.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey bailed out of my truck,\u201d Wilson said.<\/p>\n
The men ran in front of the truck.<\/p>\n
Madrid was holding his arm, and the other man was yelling at him.<\/p>\n
\u201cHunter looked at me and said, \u2018Oh shit Ron, you’re bleeding.\u2019”<\/p>\n
“I know, I know. It\u2019s alright,\u201d Wilson replied. He added that he figured if blood wasn\u2019t spurting out of his throat, he was OK.<\/p>\n
Grabbing his hunting knife from his hoodie and a folding shovel from his truck, Wilson and Steinbach prepared to defend themselves from further attack.<\/p>\n
\u201cI told them you better stop or I\u2019m going to kill you. The one guy was arguing with the other. Then, they took off,\u201d Wilson said.<\/p>\n
Wilson used his cellphone to call 911 and a two-way radio to call work to ask for help in notifying law enforcement. It took a little convincing by Steinbach before the men were believed and coworkers helped guide officers to the scene.<\/p>\n
A standoff occurred between the four men during this time.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey looked really scared,\u201d Wilson said.<\/p>\n
As his boss and coworkers approached the end of the road where Wilson had stopped, Madrid threw his knife \u201cand something else off the road, then took off up the hill. The other guy just stayed put,\u201d Wilson said.<\/p>\n
Now in contact with officers, Wilson and his coworkers were asked to stay away from the two suspects.<\/p>\n
When emergency responders arrived, officers began questioning the unnamed man who was with Madrid, but has not been charged with a crime. Other officers took statements from Wilson, Steinbach, and the other witnesses, while more went in search of Madrid.<\/p>\n
Emergency Medical Services checked Wilson\u2019s neck.<\/p>\n
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<\/p>\n
According to a news release issued Tuesday, Dec. 4, \u201cGarfield County Deputies and Colorado State Patrol responded to a call of a possible stabbing incident in the vicinity of the West Rifle exit along U.S. Interstate 70. Further investigation at the scene resulted in the discovery that one individual had fled to the nearby hillside and had positioned himself in a rocky area approximately 200 yards from the interstate and paralleling U.S. Highway 6.<\/p>\n
It was unclear whether he had a firearm. Due to the proximity of the suspect to the interstate and the potential for a catastrophic event should there be an exchange of gunfire, it was decided early on; the closure of I-70, as well as U.S. 6, was in the best interest of public safety.<\/p>\n
Wilson and his coworkers were asked to leave the area.<\/p>\n
Unable to return to work because of the closure, Wilson went to Rifle for lunch.<\/p>\n
He returned to the scene prior to Madrid\u2019s capture, at which time sheriff’s deputies \u2014 overcoming Wilson\u2019s lack of concern for his injuries \u2014 finally convinced him to go to the hospital.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey took pictures, measured the cut, and told me that, if it had been a little deeper, it would have cut my jugular veins. I didn\u2019t want stitches, so they glued the cut on my neck closed,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
As Wilson was leaving the hospital, Madrid, who had been injured by Steinbach, was being brought in.<\/p>\n
\u201cI was told that they gassed him, flash-bang bombed him, and he fought with the officers before they were able to get him under control,\u201d Wilson said.<\/p>\n
He also learned the knife Madrid had used appeared to have been a box cutter. It, along with Steinbach\u2019s knife, a family heirloom, was taken into evidence.<\/p>\n
\u201cI told officers, he\u2019s a friend of mine and saved my ass. He should get his knife back. I also told them that I appreciated everything they had done and for being supportive,\u201d Wilson said.<\/p>\n
Madrid\u2019s motive eludes Wilson.<\/p>\n
\u201cTo jump two rednecks in a camouflaged vehicle is pretty crazy,\u201d Wilson, said. \u201cI think they had a plan. I think they knew they were going to try to rob us or take the vehicle. The other guy said he didn\u2019t know anything, and I don\u2019t know. In hindsight, I think the guy had a plan the whole time.\u201d<\/p>\n
In the aftermath, Wilson, while he doesn\u2019t find the attention comfortable, decided to share his story to remind other Good Samaritans to be cautious.<\/p>\n
Close friend Brandon Shipman, a Craig resident, suggested Wilson speak with the Craig Press.<\/p>\n
\u201cI was shocked when I first heard it happened. Ron is a standup guy. He’d give the shirt off of his back to help you out,\u201d Shipman said.<\/p>\n
And Wilson wants people to consider: \u201cNever judge a book by its cover. Go with your gut,\u201d when helping others. \u201cI\u2019ve had vehicles that have broken down. People have picked me up and helped me out. It\u2019s the kind of the thing that you do. I\u2019ve helped hundreds of people out, and nothing has ever happened. If you\u2019re playing the odds, one time is not that bad.\u201d<\/p>\n
He\u2019ll carry a scar on his neck, but would he change anything he did that day?<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ve played it over in my head quite a bit. I don\u2019t think there is anything that I could have done. They were normal. They just seemed like people who needed a hand. By the time I had my bad feeling, it was already too late,\u201d Wilson said.<\/p>\n
He believes he\u2019s alive today because Steinbach was there.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was the best move that anyone did all day \u2026 my boss telling me to take Hunter with me,\u201d Wilson said.<\/p>\n
And, he also trusted his instincts.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen I pulled the knife out of the door and into the pocket of my hoodie, I\u2019ve never done that before. I followed my gut,\u201d Wilson said. \u201cI think I was aware that, when I felt my vehicle move, I knew I didn\u2019t hit a bump. I knew someone was moving on me.\u201d<\/p>\n
He sensed something and put his hand up to my throat.<\/p>\n
\u201cI got there a split second before it got too bad,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Wilson believes everything happens for a reason and he points to the good that happened as a result of the incident: Steinbach was hired full-time; the men approached Wilson\u2019s employer rather than a neighboring business, where two young children were at work with their mother; and Madrid is off the streets.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou can\u2019t focus on the bad. I was really lucky enough to find out the good that was in it. I\u2019m not traumatized. I\u2019ve got a cut on my neck. It\u2019ll heal,\u201d Wilson said.<\/p>\n
As for his attacker, Wilson said, \u201cI want justice to be served. Hopefully, that\u2019s a lengthy, unhappy stay in prison.\u201d<\/p>\n
Following a 3 1\/2-hour closure, Justin Lopez Madrid, 38, was arrested and transported to the Garfield County Jail.<\/p>\n
He has been charged with felony assault in the second degree and criminal attempt first degree, as well as tampering with physical evidence. He was also charged with misdemeanor counts of resisting arrest, obstructing a peace officer, firefighter, emergency medical services, reckless endangerment, and violation of a restraining order.<\/p>\n
While Wilson\u2019s story is a cautionary tale, he said he hopes it won\u2019t prevent him or others to act when people need help.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe are all in this together,\u201d Wilson said. \u201cTry to help your fellow human.\u201d<\/p>\n
Contact Sasha Nelson at 970-875-1794 or\u00a0<\/em>snelson@CraigDailyPress.com<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n