Rialto couple killed after DUI, pursuit suspect crashes into vehicle honored by friends and family
Friends and family gathered at the corner of Cedar Avenue and Randall Avenue in Rialto throughout Sunday, to honor their loved ones who were killed in a fatal car crash early Saturday morning.
The original incident unfolded when a drunk driving suspect, identified as Alejandro Canchola, 24, nearly hit a police vehicle while driving through Colton. After failing to pull over when officers attempted to perform a traffic stop, a pursuit ensued. Canchola led them through Colton and into Rialto via the westbound 10 Freeway.
As he exited the freeway and drove through Rialto surface streets, he collided with a vehicle traveling across the intersection before careening into a nearby house on the corner of Cedar and Randall Avenues.
The occupants of the uninvolved vehicle -- Aaron McDonald, 31, and Irene Ramos Jaramillo, 30, -- were heading home after a birthday celebration for Ramos Jaramillo. They were both killed in the incident.
"They had a whole life ahead of them," said Javier Obando, a Rialto resident and neighbor of the couple. "To lose a life to drunk driving is just so sad."
The couple was engaged to be married, after dating for over five years, and were planning a summer wedding.
Balloons, candles and flowers adorned the corner where the incident occurred, as loved ones of the couple filtered through the area Sunday. Though many had a hard time fighting through the tears to speak with CBS reporters, they relayed that the couple were beautiful souls and soulmates.
They remembered McDonald as a high school baseball standout and truck driver, who was soft spoken and supportive, while Ramos had a heart of gold and a passion for many things in life, including her job at Amazon.
Gathers detailed that the two would be memorialized in a joint funeral service.
Ramos' father called the two "a match made in heaven."
Canchola and his passenger, 21-year-old Jose Castrocota, suffered injuries in the crash as well.
Authorities arrested Canchola after he was released from the hospital, and he was booked at a San Bernardino County jail for murder.
The residence that the vehicle slammed into was red-tagged, as it sustained severe damage as result of the incident. The family of five living in the home were uninjured, though displaced after moving in just six months ago.
One of the family members who spoke with CBS reporters Saturday noted how "very unfortunate" the entire situation was.