Update: Witnesses gave chase to suspect in fatal Turlock hit-and-run crash, police say
Update, 4 p.m.:
Witnesses to a hit-and-run crash on Lander Avenue in Turlock chased the suspect after he hit a bicyclist, police said in a news release issued Tuesday afternoon. The victim, Juan Moralez, died from his injuries.
The collision occurred at 12:37 a.m. Monday, police said in the release.
Witnesses followed the driver, later identified as Francisco Javier Castellon-Gonzalez, and tried to get him to pull over.
“Castellon-Gonzalez refused and led them out into the county and eventually crashed as a result of losing control of his vehicle on Crows Landing Road,” the release said.
Gonzalez ran away from the second crash scene and was not immediately apprehended, police said. Investigators identified him, and he agreed to come to the Turlock Police Department to provide a statement. He was arrested there, and booked into Stanislaus County Jail.
Investigators added charges of vehicular manslaughter after learning Moralez had died, police said.
Original story:
Turlock police arrested a man in connection with a hit and run early Monday morning that left a Turlock man on life support.
The victim, Juan Moralez, 50, was declared brain dead Monday afternoon and will be taken off life support after any viable organs are removed, according to his son, Joseph Moralez.
Video of the collision shows Juan Moralez riding a bicycle east across Lander Avenue at Sixth Street when he was hit by a northbound vehicle.
Police have released few details about the crash but confirmed the vehicle fled from the scene and that the driver was eventually arrested.
According to the Stanislaus County Jail booking log, Castellon-Gonzalez was arrested on suspicion of felony hit and run. He is being held without bail.
Joseph Moralez said his father suffered “several spinal fractures and multiple fractures throughout his body; his skull was crushed.”
Juan Moralez lived with his mother a few blocks away from the collision scene, according to his son.
Joseph Moralez said his father was a beekeeper for many years; a family profession from his mother’s side. He said his parents were together from middle school until his mother’s death in 2012.
In addition to Joseph, Juan Moralez is survived by his two daughters, Rosemary and Maryanne, and three grandchildren. The family created a Go Fund Me account to help with expenses.
This story was originally published May 4, 2021 at 12:28 PM.
