Crime & Safety
'They Were Intentional Acts' Say Police of Sunnyvale Hit-And-Run
59-year-old victim, Edgar Quiroz, of hit-and-run on Hollenbeck Avenue died on Monday as a result of injuries.
A man who was killed in a hit-and-run that also badly injured his friend on Saturday has been identified by the Santa Clara County medical examiner's office as Edgar Quiroz, 59.
Investigators are still trying to determine where Quiroz lived.
Quiroz was walking with a 64-year-old woman, who investigators say was a friend, at about 12:20 p.m. Saturday when San Jose resident Brian Rathjen, 45, allegedly struck both pedestrians in the crosswalk of Hollenbeck Avenue at Danforth Drive, according to police.
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The driver accelerated away, and the car carried the woman for a short distance. Both victims were taken to a hospital with critical injuries,
police said.
Quiroz died Monday. The woman was still at the hospital in critical condition today, police said.
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Shortly before 1 p.m. Saturday, less than an hour after the collision, Los Altos police received reports of a wrong-way driver on
Foothill Boulevard. A few minutes later, police received another report that the wrong-way driver had been involved in a collision.
When Los Altos and Sunnyvale police arrived, they found a 1991 Acura that had been disabled in the collision. The driver had fled, police
said.
A victim at the scene was taken to a hospital with minor injuries.
At 1:05 p.m., Rathjen called 911, told dispatchers that he was the person they were looking for and gave them his location, police said.
Police said Rathjen was booked into Santa Clara County Jail on suspicion of attempted murder and battery on a police officer.
Late this morning, the district attorney's office was still reviewing the case and had not yet filed charges against Rathjen.
Sunnyvale police Capt. David Verbrugge said neither of the collisions appear to have been accidents.
"They were intentional acts," he said.
Verbrugge said police do know whether the suspect was under the influence when the incidents occurred, or if he has a history of mental
health issues.
Police believe the suspect did not know the victims.
—Breena Kerr, Bay City News Service
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