Investigators Suspect Party Bus Was Involved In Norwalk Hit-And-Run
UPDATE (2/24/2015 at 12:50 p.m.): Tommy Gutierrez, 37, of City Terrace, surrendered to authorities Tuesday morning and was arrested.
LYNWOOD (CBSLA.com) — Authorities have identified and impounded a party bus investigators suspect was involved in a hit-and-run in Norwalk.
Efren Virgen Jr. of Norwalk was dragged by the vehicle for over 200-feet and suffered major injuries. The crash happened about 2:30 a.m. Saturday.
Security footage captured by a nearby church assisted investigators in identifying the vehicle suspected in the crash.
While the footage did not capture the hit-and-run itself, authorities said it did show the suspect vehicle they described as a 1998 Ford E-450.
Authorities said leads from the public also helped to identify the vehicle in question, which is registered to a Pico Rivera resident.
According to KCAL9's Randy Paige, the owner of the bus was cooperating with the investigation. It remains unclear whether that person was driving the vehicle on the night of the accident.
In reacting to the news that the bus was identified, the victim's brother, Sam Virgen, said: "It's great news. At least they're getting somewhere."
"By the grace of God, he's doing great," Virgen said of the victim. "His recovery has been astonishing. He's alert. He's awake. He's actually eating now. It's been great. He's actually doing a lot better."
Meanwhile, Paige reports that the suspect vehicle has been impounded, and according to deputies, was being held at a tow yard as evidence.