Berkeley police arrest hit-and-run suspect in felony crash
The driver carried the pedestrian on his hood for approximately 125 feet before he fell into the roadway, police said.
A driver who plowed into a pedestrian in Berkeley this month, causing serious injuries, is now in custody despite fleeing the scene, authorities report.
The Scanner was the only news outlet to report the original hit-and-run crash, April 7, at Adeline and Harmon streets in South Berkeley.
In a statement Friday, Berkeley police said security footage, Flock cameras and witness statements help them find the driver, 41-year-old Hector Juarez-Perez of Berkeley.
Police say the pedestrian, a man in his 20s, was crossing Adeline Street, at Harmon Street, on the north side of the intersection when Juarez-Perez ran into him at 8:10 p.m.
"The impact threw the victim onto the vehicle’s hood, where he was carried for approximately 125 feet before falling back onto the roadway," BPD said. "The driver did not stop and left the victim with significant head and body injuries."
The pedestrian lost consciousness and did not recall the crash, authorities said that night.
(No updates about his condition were available as of publication time.)
Police later identified Juarez-Perez as the driver and got a warrant for his arrest, on suspicion of felony hit-and-run causing injury, records show.
Officers arrested him Wednesday night at his Berkeley home, BPD said.
According to police, building security cameras captured Juarez-Perez coming home in his car after the crash.
But, as of this week, BPD has been unable to find the car, a black 2014 Toyota Camry with a California license plate number of 8GDE554.
The car has "a distinctive strip of tape on the passenger side where the rear bumper seam meets the quarter panel," police said Friday.
BPD asks anyone with information about the Camry's location to call BPD at 510-981-5900.
Hector Juarez-Perez. BPD
As of Friday, Juarez-Perez was still listed in custody at Santa Rita Jail in Dublin with a bail of $50,000.
He had been scheduled for arraignment Friday morning, court records showed.
But, as of publication time, those records had not been updated with the outcome of that hearing — such as whether charges were filed, or if the hearing happened at all.
As of Friday, Juarez-Perez had no criminal cases listed in Alameda County Superior Court.
