LANGLEY, B.C.–One of three men heading off on a dream vacation to Hawaii was mowed down by a pickup truck early yesterday in what RCMP suspect is a horrifying case of road rage.

Silas O'Brien, a 21-year-old Abbotsford man, was killed after police say the vehicle he and his friends were in was deliberately run off a rural road in Langley while driving to Vancouver airport.

The three men, all members of Cloverdale Bible Way church, had been at a prayer meeting the night before, joined by more than 500 members of their congregation, including their families. The congregation was there to wish the three 21-year-olds a fond farewell.

Langley RCMP say the deadly run-in started just after 2 a.m. as the young men's Chevy Silverado truck came up behind a white Ford pickup truck.

Langley RCMP say the trio's Chevy Silverado truck may have tried to pass the Ford. The driver of the Ford then forced their Chevy off the road and into a ditch, police say.

The three men got out of the Chevy to survey the damage. Police say the driver of a silver Honda stopped to make sure everyone was OK. The three said they were and the Honda driver left.

That's when the driver of the Ford pickup drove back, heading straight at them.

Sam Dooley, Luke Stevens and O'Brien were standing on the side of the road when the truck came directly at them. Dooley and Stevens jumped out of the way but O'Brien was hit.

O'Brien died at the scene.

"These males were still standing on the side of the roadway and the truck came directly toward them," says Langley RCMP Cpl. Brenda Marshall.

"We are currently looking for that vehicle. We suspect it has front-end damage as well as damage to the driver's side."

The Ford truck is a pick-up equipped with a rack able to hold recreational vehicles like snowmobiles.

The truck was modified with a flat deck to carry a snowmobile but Marshall says that distinctive feature won't necessarily make it easier to trace.

Police hope the driver of the Honda who spoke with the victims just before the Ford returned may have some important clues about the accident, but so far, that driver has not come forward.

"I am sure that if that driver was listening to the news or happened to hear about this incident then they would be aware that they were the person that we would be looking for," Marshall said.

Marshall said Dooley and Stevens are traumatized by the incident.

"They are receiving counselling and assistance from our victim's assistance team right now," he said. "It's obviously something that will impact them for the rest of their lives."

The three men's senior pastor, Ed Byskal, arrived at the crime scene yesterday morning, only hours after he had led the men in prayer.

"These young men were well thought of. These are very fine young men," said Byskal. "Last night he (O'Brien) got to say goodbye to his family."

The Langley Times, with files from

The Canadian Press