Driver Sought In SR-74 Crash That Killed Lake Elsinore Woman

LAKE ELSINORE, CA — The California Highway Patrol is seeking a 40-year-old Perris man who allegedly fled the scene of a crash Sunday that killed one of his female passengers.

Pedro I. Vargas is sought for questioning in the 5:25 a.m. two-vehicle wreck on westbound state Route 74, near Hammack Avenue, just east of Lake Elsinore city limits.

According to the CHP, Vargas was driving in the highway's #2 lane when he passed a 51-year-old Lake Elsinore woman in a 2005 Acura MDX who was in the fast lane and was also heading west.

For reasons still under investigation, Vargas's 2020 Chevrolet Colorado veered to the road's right and hit the metal guardrail before rolling several times before coming to a rest.

A tire flew off the Chevy and smashed into the Acura's windshield, though the sedan driver was not injured, according to a preliminary CHP report.

Vargas fled the scene on foot, "abandoning his two female passengers," the report stated.

When first responders arrived, they found the truck's passengers. Anna Tinoco, 30, of Lake Elsinore died at the scene while a 30-year-old Perris woman was sent to Wildomar's Southwest Healthcare Inland Valley Hospital with minor injuries, according to information from the CHP and the Riverside County Sheriff-Coroner's Bureau.

The CHP Temecula Area office announced Monday afternoon that it is conducting a felony hit-and-run crash investigation. Anyone with information about the crash or Vargas's whereabouts is asked to the agency at 951-506-2000.

A description of Vargas was not available.