One person lost their life, while 12 others were injured after a car ran into a taco stand in Pomona, California on Friday evening.
Officers found the deceased body of a male after they arrived due to a call reporting a traffic collision with severe injuries on Friday around 7:45 p.m.
Los Angeles County coroner’s office identified the deceased as Gilberto Cazares Payan.
His goddaughter said, “Payan was a father of four and was picking up dinner from the taco stand when the crash happened.”
The others who were injured in the crash, were taken to nearby hospitals, with three in critical condition. Two of the victims declined an ambulance against medical advice.
The suspect, a 26-year-old Pomona woman, was driving eastbound on Holt Ave. when she suddenly veered into westbound lanes, plowing into the taco stand. She then fled the scene and officers began immediately searching for her, before she returned to the scene and turned herself in more than an hour later.
Witnesses said that glass and taco-making supplies were scattered along the sidewalk and across the corner of the parking lot. Tables were flipped and a pop-up outdoor canopy was noticeably destroyed. The sedan crashed into what appeared to be a cooking stove on the sidewalk. Debris littered the scene.
The suspect was taken into custody and booked into Pomona City Jail under two felony charges including vehicular manslaughter with gross negligence and hit-and-run resulting in death and injury.
It is unknown at this time if drugs or alcohol were contributing factors to the crash, police noted. The case remains under active investigation.
She made a, “run for the border”! huh?
Made her own drive through!