While police in Long Beach continue their investigation into a deadly crash that injured several people at a busy crosswalk, the family of the woman killed in the incident is seeking justice for the death of their loved one.
“I want justice in respect to what happened. There was no reason for my sister to die such a tragic death,” said Juan Carlos Cuarenta, the brother of Romelia Aguilar Cuarenta.
The victim, a 60-year-old Long Beach resident, was killed Saturday when a driver struck several other vehicles and plowed into a crowd of pedestrians at a crosswalk near the intersection of Aquarium Way and Shoreline Drive. The Long Beach Police Department (LBPD) said in addition to Romelia’s death, several people were hospitalized, including one person whose condition was described as critical.
“I saw her on the ground and I grabbed her hand to check her pulse and she no longer had a pulse,” Juan Carlos told NBC4.
According to the victim’s brother, Romelia was in the area to attend a Halloween event with her family. She decided to stop by the food truck where Juan Carlos worked and was killed in the incident soon after.
“I returned to my working quarters and about 5 or 10 minutes later, I heard a car crash and so I went to check it out,” Juan Carlos said. He said soon after, he found his sisters among the pedestrians who were hurt.
“It was just terrible,” one witness told NBC4. “So, we just started, myself and a few other people, just started kind of praying for her. There was a young man that just started yelling and running towards her, just yelling, ‘no,’ and everything was just chaotic.”
The victim’s brother described Romelia as a well-liked person who will sorely be missed.
“She was a brilliant person, a really good person,” he said. “Everyone who knows her will only have good things to say about her.”
The driver, who was identified as 46-year-old Khalid Yagobbi of Los Angeles, is facing a murder charge in connection with the incident. It is unclear what caused the crash, but police believe it may have been intentional. He is being held on $2 million bail.
The investigation is ongoing.