A 72-year-old man is fighting for his life after being brutally struck by a hit-and-run driver earlier this month in Carson, and now his family is asking for the public’s help.
Surveillance footage of the Jan. 10 incident shows Gumercindo Gonzalez stepping into the crosswalk at Santa Fe Avenue and East Dominguez Street when a driver in a dark gray 4-door car makes a U-turn moments before slamming into the 72-year-old and failing to stop, attempt to render aid or identify themselves.
“He crosses, the car speeds up and just makes a straight up head-on collision,” the victim’s grieving granddaughter, who did not want to be identified on camera, told KTLA’s Omar Lewis. “He hits my grandfather really hard. He hits the windshield, hits the ground and he just takes off as if nothing happened.”
She added that her grandfather, who only recently moved to Southern California from Texas, had been walking home from the grocery store just after 12 p.m. that afternoon.
“This is literally a block from home. He’s literally here,” Gonzalez’s granddaughter explained. “My neighbors around here know my grandfather and he is a sweetheart.”
Neighbors rushed to help him immediately after the crash and alerted his family.
The 72-year-old is now in critical condition, breathing with the help of a ventilator and fighting to survive.
“He has lacerations, bruises, he has cuts,” his granddaughter said. “He got a big cut on his forehead. He ended up having internal bleeding in the brain.”
The victim’s family is pleading with the community for help in hopes of bringing the driver to justice.
“I’m very scared. I really hope that he makes it, and I really hope that you guys, as my community, can help me out and find this guy and hold him responsible for what he’s done because that could’ve been anybody’s parent, brother, sister,” Gonzalez’s granddaughter said.
They are hoping that by releasing the surveillance footage, someone out there will recognize the dark gray four-door car with black wheels that already had damage to its front passenger side and know who might have been behind the wheel that day.
“If you guys see the car, a license plate number, take a picture, call the police report,” the granddaughter said. “You can always remain anonymous. Don’t be afraid. Please help me catch this guy.”
Anyone with information about the incident or who may recognize the vehicle is urged to contact the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department’s Carson Division, who is investigating the tragedy.
In the meantime, Gonzalez’s family has set up a GoFundMe to help with mounting medical bills.