RIVERSIDE (CNS) - A 38-year-old man was putting gas in his car on the shoulder of Interstate 215 in Riverside when he was struck and killed Monday by a hit-and-run driver.
Gilberto Sotelo was fatally hit about 1:45 a.m. on the southbound side of I-215, just north of La Cadena Drive, according to the California Highway Patrol.
The agency said Sotelo's car ran out of fuel, so he pulled onto the freeway shoulder. It was unclear whether he obtained a gas can from his trunk, or walked to a service station and filled up a container before returning to his car.
As he began pouring gas into the sedan, a blue-colored vehicle veered toward him for unknown reasons, hitting him and his car, according to the CHP. The motorist immediately fled.
Witnesses stopped to render aid and call 911. Riverside Fire Department paramedics reached the location less than 10 minutes later and pronounced the victim dead at the scene.
CHP officers searched for the hit-and-run driver, but couldn't immediately locate the suspect. However, officers were able to retrieve pieces of the car that shattered when it struck the victim's vehicle. That evidence was being processed Monday.
Anyone with information was urged to contact the CHP's Riverside office at 951-637-8000.
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