Fugitive Accused In Corona Freeway Death Gets Trial Date

RIVERSIDE COUNTY, CA — A Dec. 19 trial date was confirmed Thursday for a man accused of killing a 41-year-old woman on the Corona (71) Expressway and then fleeing to Mexico, where he was apprehended.

Robert Chico Griffin, 47, of Chino is charged with gross vehicular manslaughter, hit-and-run resulting in death, driving on a suspended license and operating a motor vehicle in violation of a court order, with a sentence- enhancing allegation of fleeing the scene of a crime, for the death of Danelle Aguirre of Moreno Valley last year.

During a status hearing Thursday at the Riverside Hall of Justice, Riverside County Superior Court Judge Jerry Yang conferred with the prosecution and defense regarding scheduling, and both sides agreed to make preparations for trial as early as next week.

Yang assigned the matter to the courtroom of Superior Court Judge John Molloy for further proceedings.

It was unknown whether jury selection would begin prior to the Christmas break, or in early January.

Griffin is being held without bail at the Robert Presley Jail in Riverside.

According to the California Highway Patrol, at 2:25 a.m. on Aug. 15, 2022, the defendant was going northbound on the 71, just north of the Riverside (91) Freeway in Corona, in a Lexus SC430 when he approached a Dodge Ram pickup just ahead of him.

Officer Javier Navarro alleged that Griffin plowed into the rear of the truck at an unknown speed, causing the driver — whose identity was not released — to lose control and veer off of the highway, where the Dodge overturned.

The pickup's passenger, Aguirre, was fatally injured. The driver suffered unspecified minor injuries, from which he has since recovered.

Navarro alleged Griffin raced away from the crash and fled south of the border, where a joint investigation by the U.S. Marshals and Mexican State Police uncovered his whereabouts, culminating in his apprehension sometime in August 2022.

Details regarding how the CHP identified the defendant as the alleged perpetrator were not provided.

Griffin has no documented prior felony convictions. However, court documents show he has an unresolved case for allegedly being an unlicensed driver of a vehicle in 2021.