Police: Woman intentionally drove off cliff, killing twin during fight
A Maui woman is accused of killing her twin sister after allegedly driving their SUV off a cliff along Hana Highway last week.
Alexandria Duval, 37, of Haiku, survived the dramatic, 200-foot plunge and crash that wrecked the Ford Explorer on a rocky coastline.
Her twin sister, identified as Anastasia Duval, was pronounced dead at the scene.
Authorities say the sisters were also known as Allison (Alexandria) and Ann (Anastasia) Dadow.
Alexandria Duval appeared in a Wailuku courtroom Monday on a second-degree attempted murder charge, her arm in a sling but, surprisingly, able to walk.
Newly released court documents reveal more bizarre twists to an already shocking incident, including witness accounts that the two women were “screaming and arguing with each other,” and “the passenger was pulling at the driver’s hair and the steering wheel.”
Maui firefighters and police responded to the Puuiki area, about four miles south of Hana at 4:42 p.m., May 29, after the SUV went over the makai shoulder directly across of St. Peter Catholic Mission Church.
Rescue crews had to manually pry the sisters from the vehicle as it lay on lava rock surrounded by water.
Lawrence Lau told KHON2 he saw the two fighting before the SUV drove off the cliff.
“I saw a pair of hands jerking the head, pulling the hair,” Lau said. “There were hands pulling her head down like this, and her head was jerking.”
Lau says all of a sudden, the driver took off and drove right past them and off the cliff.
“My first thought when she was coming past us was, ‘Don’t hit me, don’t hit me,’ because she was slightly out of control. She was doing 40 miles an hour from a dead stop at that point,” Lau said. “I’m just sad about it. I’m amazed that that lady survived. I am really amazed because I saw how far she fell.”
Records say investigators found that there were no attempts of braking, based on witness accounts, roadway debris at the scene, and the vehicle’s airbag control module, which “showed that prior to and at the time of the vehicle’s collision into the wall, there was hard acceleration and a hard left steering input…”
Documents show that Alexandria tried to take a flight to the mainland on Wednesday but missed it, and that she was booked on another flight that night.
Her attorney, Todd Eddins, told the court she was not trying to evade the law.
“Miss Dadow is making plans to return home to attend her sister’s funeral,” he said. “There is no attempt to flee the jurisdiction with respect to any alleged crimes here.”
Eddins says the sisters ran a successful yoga studio in Florida, and that this has been a devastating, heart-shattering tragedy for the family.
“People have reasons for having a different name. There’s nothing to suggest that she came here with a fake name,” he said.
Records show that the sisters were arrested for disorderly conduct on Dec. 24. They posted bail but did not appear for their hearing, so a bench warrant was issued for their arrest.