Modesto man arrested after fatal DUI hit-and-run near Salida
A 67-year-old Salida man was killed early Thursday in a hit-and-run crash, and the suspected driver was arrested nearby on suspicion of DUI and vehicular manslaughter, according to the California Highway Patrol.
The collision occurred about 3:41 a.m. at the intersection of Covert Road and Toomes Road, the CHP said in a news release.
Emergency responders found a Toyota sedan in a field southwest of the intersection. The driver, identified as 67-year-old Victor Martinez Gonzalez, of Salida, was pronounced dead at the scene.
About a mile away, officers located a 2006 Honda sedan near Hammett and Bacon roads. The driver, 20-year-old Luis Mercado-Ulloa of Modesto, had left the scene of the crash, the CHP said.
Investigators believe Gonzalez had been traveling south on Toomes Road and had stopped at the intersection with Covert Road. Mercado-Ulloa was allegedly driving west on Covert when he failed to stop at the stop sign and struck the Toyota broadside.
CHP officers determined Mercado-Ulloa was under the influence of alcohol. He was arrested and booked into the Stanislaus County Public Safety Center on suspicion of felony DUI, hit-and-run, and vehicular manslaughter.
