Man Charged With Murder Of Girl, 12, In High-Speed Pursuit
WESTMINSTER (CBSLA.com) – A Santa Ana man has been charged with murdering a 12-year-old girl and seriously injuring her brother and mother in a high-speed crash while fleeing from police.
Aleksandar Apostolovic, 26, is charged with one felony count each of murder, aggravated assault on a peace officer, hit-and-run causing death or permanent injury, evading while driving recklessly causing seriously bodily injury and death, according to the Orange County District Attorney's Office.
He is also charged with first degree residential burglary with sentencing enhancements for a prior strike conviction for first degree burglary in 2008 and multiple prison priors.
Apostolovic was arrested on April 4 after detectives from the Westminster Police Department, working to locate him on an outstanding warrant, attempted to initiate a traffic stop in marked patrol vehicles when they found him driving Sigler Park.
Officers were then led on a short pursuit, during which he allegedly crashed into a marked patrol car and two other vehicles.
One of the crashes fatally wounded Vivian Nguyen, a student at Johnson Middle School, and injured her mother and 13-year-old brother, passengers in one of the vehicles involved.
The pursuit ended when Apostoloic's black Chevy Suburban broadsided a minivan. The suspect fled on foot into a nearby neighborhood, where he allegedly entered an occupied residence and hid in a bathroom.
Apostoloic is accused of fleeing the home after he was located by the resident.
Police found him hiding in a backyard near the intersection of Brooklawn and Illinois Street just after midnight.
If convicted on all counts, Apostolovic faces a maximum sentence of more than 35 years to life in state prison.
He is being held on $1 million bail with an additional no-bail hold for a warrant case in Los Angeles County.
RELATED STORY:
Suspect Arrested In Westminster Pursuit That Killed Girl, 12