Coroner’s officials Sunday released the name of the three men killed in a possible hit-and-run crash in Anaheim, where two women later showed up at an area hospital and were questioned by police.
The victims were identified as Jacob Rolon of La Mirada, 32, Richard Zuniga of Anaheim and Alexander Smiller of Los Angeles, 63, according to the Los Angeles County coroner’s office.
Officers responded to Brookhurst Street and Orange Avenue at about 2:50 a.m. Tuesday, where they found a white Mercedes sedan abandoned and a black Kia with three men inside, all of whom were pronounced dead at the scene, according to Sgt. Shane Carringer of the Anaheim Police Department.
Witnesses saw two women in their 20s get out of the Mercedes and get into another vehicle, Carringer said. The women later showed up at an area hospital, where one was treated for minor injuries and the other was more seriously hurt and required surgery, he said.
The Mercedes was going northbound on Brookhurst when it slammed into the Kia, which was exiting the parking lot of a hookah lounge, Carringer said. The Mercedes caught fire, but it was a small blaze that an officer on scene was able to extinguish, he said.
Police were working to determine who picked up the women and what relationship, if any, that driver had with the driver and passenger of the Mercedes.
Investigators want to question the motorist as a witness, as well as anyone else who may have seen the collision, Carringer said, noting that they were working to determine who was at fault in the collision and whether it was a hit-and-run.
“Traffic investigators have their work cut out for them to figure out what happened and whether criminal charges are appropriate,” Carringer said.
Police did not immediately release the names of the men who died in the crash because investigators were still working to notify all of their relatives, he said.
Witnesses were asked to call police at 714-765-1861.
