Controversy arises over collision involving La Habra police

Charles and Susanne Antuna were driving their Chrysler PT Cruiser to church to hear their daughter sing in a musical. A La Habra police officer was racing in her patrol car to help other officers in pursuit of a wanted parolee.

Just after 5 p.m. Sunday at the intersection of Euclid Street and La Habra Boulevard, the two cars collided. Susanne Antuna, 55, died at the scene. Charles Antuna, 54, died early Monday at UC Irvine Medical Center.

The officer, whose name was not released because of an ongoing investigation by the California Highway Patrol, was taken to the same hospital and treated for soft tissue injuries.

Within hours of the crash, the parolee, Roary William Gorbea, 27, had been arrested on suspicion of indirectly causing the couple’s deaths by leading police on a pursuit. The next day, the Antunas’ daughter Andrea was disputing reports that the patrol car’s lights and siren were on when it entered the intersection.

Witnesses told authorities the patrol car had its lights and sirens on at the time of the collision, said Officer Ray Payton of the Westminster office of the California Highway Patrol. There is also preliminary evidence that the victims were not wearing seat belts, he said.

But Andrea Antuna told television station KABC that witnesses told her there were no sirens. “They take that officer to the hospital right away, and she’s fine, but my dad is gone, and now my mom’s gone,” she said.

The chain of events began when La Habra police tried to arrest Gorbea at a home in the 200 block of Capella Street. Gorbea fled, and police followed, believing he was armed and dangerous, said La Habra Police spokeswoman Cindy Knapp.

Gorbea had been arrested and convicted of shooting at a La Habra police officer, “a fact known to the pursuing officers,” according to a news release from La Habra police.

The officer was responding to an “officer needs assistance” call when she drove into the intersection, traveling at what witnesses told investigators was about 50 mph.

But one man who saw the accident from a nearby park said the police car appeared to be going faster than 65 mph.

“The cop car flew through the intersection and hit a car straight on and flipped the car into the Police Department parking lot,” said Hugo Islas, 27, of Rancho Cucamonga. “I didn’t understand why they were going so fast.”

The La Habra Police Department declined to comment on the patrol car’s speed, citing the ongoing investigation.

Gorbea was arrested about 9:15 p.m. Sunday after a standoff with police in an apartment complex in the 900 block of North Hillside Avenue.

He was booked at the La Habra Police Department on suspicion of murder as well as for parole violation, resisting officers and gang affiliation. He is being held without bail.

“The accident was a result of his actions,” Knapp said.

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tony.barboza@latimes.com