BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (KBAK/KBFX) — A pedestrian died after a hit-and-run crash in southeast Bakersfield Saturday night, according to the Bakersfield Police Department. Officers tracked down the suspect and arrested him on charges related to vehicular manslaughter.
The BPD said officers first responded to the 200 block of Belle Terrace to reports of a car striking a pedestrian around 9:50 p.m.
When they arrived, officers found a woman suffering major injuries in the roadway. She was later pronounced dead at the scene.
A preliminary investigation found the pedestrian was on the south shoulder of the roadway, when a car driving eastbound veered from the roadway, and struck the pedestrian.
Witnesses said the suspect fled the area after the crash, and described the car as a dark sedan.
Less than an hour after the crash, officers found the suspect vehicle parked in front of a house in east Bakersfield.
Officers then arrested 42-year-old Pedro Contreras on charges related to vehicular manslaughter and hit and run causing death.
Investigators believe speed and impairment were factors in the crash.
Contreras was taken to the hospital, then booked into the Lerdo Pre-Trial Facility.
The Kern County Coroner’s Office will release the victim’s identity at a later time.
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Anyone with information regarding this investigation is asked to call the BPD at (661) 327-7111.