A man in his mid-30s riding an electric scooter was struck by two separate vehicles that fled the scene Friday night in the Florence neighborhood of South Los Angeles, and he did not survive. The first driver dragged him roughly 700 feet down Broadway before he came loose from the car, and a second driver then ran him over and dragged him another 200 feet before speeding off.
The first crash happened at about 9:45 p.m. Friday at Broadway and 85th Street, according to MyNewsLA.com. Police said the man was crossing Broadway in the crosswalk at 85th when a vehicle traveling north struck him and dragged him nearly 700 feet before he became dislodged from the car. A second vehicle then struck him again near 83rd Street, dragging him an additional 200 feet before he separated from that car as well, per the same report.
Los Angeles Fire Department paramedics responded and pronounced the man dead at the scene, the outlet reported. NBC Los Angeles reported that the incident was called in on Broadway just before 10 p.m., with a witness describing the victim as a man on an electric scooter. Authorities have not released his name, pending notification of his relatives, per the earlier MyNewsLA.com report.
Search for a Damaged Black Sedan
Investigators are looking for a black vehicle, possibly a sedan, with damage to its front end, according to NBC Los Angeles. Broadway was shut down in both directions between 85th Place and 83rd Street while officers worked the scene, the station reported, and the investigation remains ongoing. Neither driver stopped to render aid or identify themselves, even though both were legally required to do so, police told the outlet.
LAPD South Traffic Division detectives are asking anyone with information that could lead to the arrest and conviction of either driver to come forward. Tips can be directed to Officer Cha or Detective Elizarraraz at 323-421-2577, or submitted anonymously to Crime Stoppers at lacrimestoppers.org or by calling 800-222-TIPS (8477).
A Grim Echo of an Unsolved Case
The Florence crash lands close to another unresolved South LA case involving an e-scooter rider. In that incident, 33-year-old Christian Lira was fatally struck while riding his scooter near Hoover Street and 75th Street, according to CBS News Los Angeles, which reported the crash happened around 5:30 p.m. and that Lira was later identified by the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner. Accounts of the exact date differ: NBC Los Angeles reported the collision occurred on March 26, while Fox 11 reported it happened on March 25, both citing Hoover Street as the location.
Investigators in the Lira case said the driver was behind the wheel of an older-model black Cadillac CTS with distinctive rims and an aftermarket hood scoop, and that the car appeared to run him over multiple times before fleeing south, according to NBC Los Angeles. A standing reward of up to $50,000 has since been offered for information leading to that driver's identification, arrest and conviction, CBS News Los Angeles reported. That case, which also involved an LAPD South Traffic Division investigation, remains unsolved months later.
LAPD's South Traffic Division reported 49 traffic fatalities for the year, most attributed to excessive speed, according to the earlier NBC Los Angeles report on the Lira reward. As detectives work to identify the two drivers who fled Friday's crash, Friday's victim becomes the latest name — still unknown to the public — added to a South LA roadway toll that has already proven difficult to resolve.
