Palos Hills Victim of Hit and Run Helps Riverside Police Nab Suspect

Quick thinking by a Palos Hills woman whose car was struck by another driver who then fled the scene was key in helping Riverside police nab the suspect.

On Thursday, September 18, at 7:32 p.m., the Riverside Police Department received several 911 calls of a hit and run that occurred on the 3200 block of South Harlem and Riverside. A woman driving a black Lexus flagged down officers, saying that she her car had just been struck by a vehicle that then drove away.

The victim, a 49-year-old female resident of Palos Hills, said she was not injured. She reported that a red pickup truck changed lanes from the left lane to the right lane while traveling south on Harlem and rear-ended her vehicle. The offending vehicle then just continued directly by her in the center lane and did not stop. She pulled behind the vehicle and took a photograph of the truck and the license plate and attempted to wave the offending vehicle over to the curb. The vehicle fled the scene once he observed the victim taking photographs of his vehicle.

There was damage to the rear of the victim’s 2010 Lexus. She described the offender to the officer and provided him with a photo of the vehicle and license plate.

Police then traced the license plate to the 5300 block of South Hunt Avenue in Summit. When officers arrived, they found the offending vehicle parked alongside the garage and the offender a short distance from his vehicle. Riverside Police were able to take the offender into custody at 9 p.m. on Thursday night at his residence without incident.

It was learned during the investigation that the offender had a revoked driver’s license. He told police he needed to get home to take his medicine and “had no time to stop”.

Riverside Police charged Pasqual Hernandez, 42 of the 5300 block of South Hunt Avenue in Summit with hit and run property damage, failure to reduce speed to avoid an accident, driving while license revoked, and illegal lane usage.

“This arrest would not have been possible if it was not for the alert actions of the victim,” said Riverside Police Chief Thomas Weitzel. “She was able to take her cell phone out and take a photograph of the vehicle and the license plate and provided that information to the responding officer. She further emailed both photographs directly to the Riverside Police Department so they could use the photographs as evidence for their case investigation.”

Hernandez has been arrested 7 times between 2004 and 2014 for driving while license revoked and no valid driver’s license. The basis for his revoked license is for never having a license and continuing to drive.