Driver arrested hours after 64-year-old woman killed in Berkeley pedestrian hit-and-run
BERKELEY, Calif. -- A 64-year-old woman died Tuesday evening after being struck by a vehicle that fled the scene in Berkeley and a 66-year-old driver was arrested hours later, police said.
Officers responded at 6:38 p.m. to Ashby Avenue and Regent Street after receiving a report that a westbound vehicle had hit a pedestrian and left the scene. The woman was taken by Berkeley Fire Department personnel to a local trauma center, where she later died.
A witness helped investigators identify the suspect vehicle, described as a silver Kia Soul, after spotting it a few blocks from the crash and providing its license plate number, police said.
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Officers entered the plate into the department's automated license plate reader system. At 9:02 p.m., the system alerted officers that the vehicle had entered Interstate Highway 80 from the Gilman Street on-ramp.
Police saw the vehicle traveling toward San Rafael, just beyond the I-580/80 split. Officers stopped the vehicle and detained the driver.
The driver was arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence, DUI causing injury, hit-and-run causing injury and gross vehicular manslaughter, among other alleged offenses, police said.
They credited the witness's information and the license plate reader alert with helping officers find the driver within hours of the crash.
"We are grateful for the community's continued trust and support, and especially for the witness whose actions helped officers locate the driver," the department said. "Our thoughts remain with the victim's family and loved ones."
