Hit-And-Run-Driver Strikes Victim, Then Another Driver Ran Him Over On I-15 SB Sunday

LAKE ELSINORE, CA — A 35-year-old Fontana man was struck and killed Sunday night by a hit-and-run driver on a southbound I-15 freeway on-ramp in Lake Elsinore, California Highway Patrol reported.

The sheriff-coroner's bureau has not yet released the man's identity.

According to CHP officer Mike Lassig's report, the grim discovery was made at 10:15 p.m. on the on-ramp to the southbound 15 Freeway from Main Street in Lake Elsinore.

Based on the preliminary investigation, the victim was wearing dark clothing and was found in an unlit portion of the freeway on-ramp, Lassig said. "Investigators determined that a Toyota Camry Hybrid from the 2007-2011 model year was driving toward the freeway at an unknown rate of speed and struck the victim, then fled the scene."

A short time later, the driver of a 2017 Ford Explorer heading toward the freeway on the on-ramp ran over the pedestrian, Lassig said.

"The victim was left lying in the traffic lane, and the driver of the Explorer was unable to see the man in the road," Lassig said. That driver pulled over and called 911. Lake Elsinore Police Department, a Riverside County Sheriff's Department division, and CHP officers responded to the scene.

CHP officers found evidence of the Camry at the scene, leading investigators to narrow in on a model and year, according to Lassig.

"CHP is asking for assistance from anyone who may have witnessed this incident," he said. "If anyone has information about the whereabouts of the driver or the Toyota Camry Hybrid driven in the hit-and-run crash, they are asked to call CHP Temecula at 951-466-4300.

"The CHP would like to remind the public that it is illegal for a pedestrian to walk on a freeway or a freeway on-ram at any time," Lassig added. "When walking on a roadway, pedestrians are recommended to wear bright colored clothing to make themselves more visible."