CORONA: Man wanted in connection with fatal hit and run

CORONA – Officials are asking for the public’s help locating one of two people who were allegedly involved in a fatal hit and run collision, Saturday, May 6. The fatal crash happened on the 800 block of Avenida Del Vista in Corona.

“Traffic investigators have identified both men and are seeking the public’s help in locating Eduardo Lopez, a 20-year-old resident of Anaheim,” Riverside Police Sergeant Paul Mercado said in a written update to the ongoing investigation.

“(Lopez) is wanted for questioning regarding his involvement in the collision,” Mercado explained. “The second occupant has been identified and is cooperating with the investigation.”

The investigation into the fatal hit and run began when Corona Police and Fire personnel were dispatched to Avenida Del Vista about 11:44 p.m., regarding several 911 calls reporting a hit and run collision. Callers told emergency dispatchers the victim was left laying in the roadway after he was hit by a vehicle that had been traveling northbound on the street.

The driver and passenger of the vehicle did not stop after the collision and the pair failed to provide medical aid to the critically injured victim or call 911 to report the collision.

When officers and paramedics arrived at the scene they found Jonathan Santos-Cantu, a 20-year-old Corona resident, down in the roadway. He was about 200 feet north of Via Santiago and had suffered major, traumatic injuries from being struck by the vehicle.

AMR medics transported Santos-Cantu to Corona Regional Hospital for further life-saving measures; however, he succumbed to his injuries and was pronounced dead by hospital staff. According to coroner officials, Santos-Cantu died about three hours after he was hit, at 2:57 a.m.

Shortly after the hit and run was reported, witnesses advised seeing two men pushing a 2006, black Lincoln LS4 sedan into the Wal-Mart parking lot.

“Both men then fled the area on foot,” said Mercado.

Investigators recovered the vehicle and began processing it for evidence related to the hit and run. Pictures of the sedan released by the department showed front-end damage consistent with a vehicle versus pedestrian traffic collision.

 

During their investigation, Corona police officials identified and located one person who was in the vehicle at the time of the collision. That person, who has not been named by officials, was cooperating with the ongoing investigation, according to Mercado.

Anyone with information about this investigation or who knows the whereabouts of Eduardo Lopez, is encouraged to contact Officer Najmulski at (951) 817-5844 or by email. Tips can also be called in to the Corona Police Department Communication Center at (951) 736-2330, option 3. Callers can remain anonymous.

 

Contact the writer: [email protected]

Trevor Montgomery runs Riverside County News Source and Shasta County News Source. Additionally, he writes for Riverside County based newspapers, Valley News and Anza Valley Outlook and also writes for Bonsall/Fallbrook Village News in San Diego County.

Trevor spent 10 years in the U.S. Army as an Orthopedic Specialist before joining the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department in 1998. He was medically retired after losing his leg and breaking his back in an off-duty accident.

During his time with the sheriff’s department, Trevor worked at several different stations, including Robert Presley Detention Center, Southwest Station in Temecula, Hemet/Valle Vista Station, Ben Clark Public Safety Training Center and Lake Elsinore Station, along with other locations.