NORTHERN CALIFORNIA – The Napa County Sheriff’s Office on Tuesday issued an update into its investigation of a murder-suicide that occurred on Monday near Yountville.
Emad Rasmy Tawfilis, 48, of Los Gatos was shot by Fairfield resident Robert Dahl, 47, owner of Dahl Vineyard at 6155 Solano Ave., where deputies were dispatched late Monday morning, according to a report from Capt. Doug Pike of the Napa County Sheriff's Office.
Pike said that, based on the facts of the investigation and witness interviews, investigators concluded that the two men had a business relationship and were currently involved in some civil litigation.
The men had been scheduled to meet with each other on Monday at Dahl Vineyards for a possible settlement conference, without their attorneys, Pike said. “During the meeting, something tragically went wrong.”
Investigation of the scene and eyewitness interviews indicates that the assault began inside the winery building. From there, Pike said Tawfilis fled, on foot, southbound through the vineyard with Dahl pursuing him in his black 2014 Toyota SUV.
As he was being pursued, Tawfilis was on a 911 line with dispatch reporting that he had been shot and that “Robert Dahl” was coming after him in his truck and was trying to kill him, according to Pike's report.
As he was chasing Tawfilis, Dahl was believed to be firing repeatedly at Tawfilis with a .22 caliber semiautomatic handgun, Pike said.
After making his way to the intersection of Hoffman Lane and Solano Avenue, the wounded Tawfilis fell to the ground as Dahl exited his SUV with the handgun, walked up to the victim and appeared to execute him just as the deputies were arriving, Pike said.
Pike said that Dahl – seeing the approaching sheriff's units – then ran back to his SUV and fled the scene, at a high rate of speed, northbound on Highway 29, with deputies in pursuit.
While one of the arriving deputies attempted to render aid to Tawfilis, Pike said the other deputies – who were soon joined by officers from the Napa Police Department and a helicopter from the California Highway Patrol – continued the vehicle pursuit.
The pursuit ended on Wall Road after Dahl crashed through a gate onto private property and came to a stop in a heavily wooded area, Pike said.
After Dahl crashed through the gate, deputies briefly lost visual contact of the suspect vehicle. Pike said that because deputies had lost temporarily lost sight of Dahl they did not know if he was still in the vehicle.
On scene deputies then established a perimeter and requested SWAT teams from both the sheriff’s office and the Napa Police Department, Pike said.
Pike said that, upon arrival, the SWAT teams located Dahl in the driver’s seat of his vehicle deceased from an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound.
The autopsies for the two men were scheduled to take place on Tuesday, Pike said.
REGIONAL: Authorities release more details on Napa County murder-suicide
- Lake County News reports
- Posted On