New Bedford man charged with slashing van driver

By Todd Feathers, Globe Correspondent

Police say a 19-year-old man is facing charges of slashing the driver of a van carrying four children. In what police called a road rage incident, Aaron Maldonado of New Bedford slashed the driver, who was taking children home from school, with a knife on the nose and back of the neck, inflicting minor injuries, police said. The argument began after Maldonado’s car and the van narrowly missed colliding, said Captain Steve Vicente of the New Bedford police. Maldonado was charged with assault and battery with a dangerous weapon, armed assault with intent to murder, mayhem, and driving without a license.