Off-Duty Officer Killed on Highway

An off-duty officer with the Orange County Sheriff’s Department was killed early Sunday after he stopped to help motorists in an overturned car and was struck by another vehicle. A victim of the earlier accident also was killed, authorities said.

The officer, who was identified by the Sheriff’s Department as Melvin Guevara, 24, of Anaheim stopped near the scene of a single-car accident on the 91 Freeway in Cerritos about 3:30 a.m.

While Guevara was assisting the occupants of that vehicle, he was struck and killed by another car, authorities said.

A passenger in the overturned car, identified as Genaro Garcia Pelayo, 22, of Orange County also was hit and killed, a spokesman with the California Highway Patrol said. CHP Officer Patrick Kimball said yet another vehicle struck the overturned car but said it was not yet clear whether that vehicle hit either of the victims.

“It looks like [Guevara] was just trying to be a good Samaritan,” Kimball said.

The accident is under investigation. No charges have been filed.

A spokesman for the Sheriff’s Department said Guevara was a non-sworn “special officer,” one rank below deputy, who had worked for the department since May.

He was a member of the security detail at John Wayne Airport, the spokesman said.

Guevara is survived by his wife, four children, five brothers, two sisters and his parents.