19-year-old fled scene of deadly crash, then her dad helped hide car, CA police say
After a 19-year-old was arrested in connection with a fatal hit-and-run, her father was also arrested and accused of helping hide the damaged car, California police say.
A bystander called 911 shortly before 10 a.m. on Thursday, Aug. 1, saying a pedestrian was hit by a car on Hearn Avenue at the train tracks, but the driver left, the Santa Rosa Police Department said in an Aug. 13 Facebook post.
Officers arrived to find “an unconscious and severely injured” man, police said.
The man, later identified as Mahlon Weaver, 33, was rushed to a hospital in critical condition, police said. He died from his injuries a little more than a week later, according to police.
Along with witness statements, police said officers obtained security footage from a nearby home, which showed the suspect driving west on Hearn Avenue, approaching the railroad tracks.
As Weaver was crossing Hearn Avenue, he was hit, the video shows, according to police.
The driver of the white Lexus sedan stopped for 1.5 minutes, but they did not leave the car before continuing to drive west, police said.
As officers were not able to discern a license plate number or “any identifying features of any occupant(s)” from the video, they looked to a mounted Flock Safety camera a block away from the crash, police said.
While reviewing the footage, officers spotted a white Lexus entering the intersection just before the collision, police said.
Officers obtained the car’s license plate number, went to the home of the registered owner and spoke with the residents, according to police.
In doing so, they learned a 19-year-old resident, identified as Alejandra Vasquez, was driving the car, which was parked in the garage, at the time of the collision, police said.
She was arrested and booked into jail on a felony hit-and-run charge, according to police.
Police said they do not believe drugs or alcohol were a factor in the collision.
More than a week after the woman’s arrest, her 49-year-old father, Rafael Vasquez, was also arrested and accused of “accessory after the fact,” police said.
Through investigation, police said they learned the father helped hide the car after the crash.
An investigation into the collision is ongoing, police said.
Santa Rosa is about a 55-mile drive northwest from San Francisco.
This story was originally published August 14, 2024 at 11:46 AM with the headline "19-year-old fled scene of deadly crash, then her dad helped hide car, CA police say."
