Former caregiver accused of crashing van into Irvine home, stabbing paralyzed resident to death

Irvine police shot a man whom they accused of crashing into the home of a paralyzed man he previously cared for and killing him Monday morning, authorities announced.

The victim’s family told KTLA-TV news that their relative was paralyzed from the waist down. There is no clear motive behind the killing, authorities said.

Officers responded to a home around 2:15 a.m. Monday near the intersection of Whistling Swan and Wetstone in the Woodbridge housing development, the Irvine Police Department announced in a Facebook post.

Police said John Alexander Bash III was killed in his Irvine home on Monday by his former caregiver. Relatives said Bash relied on a wheelchair after an accident left him paralyzed from the waist down.

(Kaitlyn Myers)

When Irvine police arrived, they found a Honda Odyssey crashed into the home’s garage door and a man dead inside the house, the department said. He was later identified as John Alexander Bash III, who lived at the home and was discovered by his current caregiver, the Irvine Police Department said in a statement.

Bash had been stabbed to death, according to authorities.

About an hour later, officers approached a possible suspect at West Yale Loop and Stone Creek South, which is about a quarter of a mile from the crash site. The man, identified as 47-year-old Aaron Matthew Shindle, was carrying a knife, and authorities said he raised it as he approached the officers. Officers shot Shindle, who was later confirmed to be the owner of the Honda Odyssey.

He later died from his injuries, according to police.

Bash’s brother-in-law, Lindsey Myers, said Shindle was Bash’s caregiver more than five years ago, and since then the family has not had any interaction with him.

It was a shock that Shindle reentered Bash’s life, Myers said.

Bash visited friends in San Diego on Sunday and did not return home until around midnight with his current caregiver, Myers said. On Monday morning, Bash’s family started to learn about what happened when they watched the morning news.

“Everybody’s just in total shock that this guy would come and murder a helpless victim,” Myers said. “John is literally helpless, cannot move, cannot defend himself, cannot do anything. This is just a crime of the most heinous capacity.”