Driver Arrested After Pedestrian Is Struck

A 65-year-old pedestrian was hospitalized in serious condition Friday morning after being hit by a car whose driver allegedly ran a red light and then fled the scene, the Los Angeles Police Department said.

Piyabrut Dizathien, 51, of Sun Valley, was driving westbound at a legal speed just after 7 a.m. on the 12700 block of Oxnard Street when he allegedly ran a red light at the corner of Bellaire Avenue, LAPD Det. Jim Mann said.

Dizathien tried to swerve out of the way of southbound traffic and struck the pedestrian, who was in a marked crosswalk, Mann said. He continued driving for a short distance with the pedestrian on the hood of his 1986 Mitsubishi Mirage, then fled in the car, Mann said.

Dizathien was arrested after witnesses who followed him in their cars reported his whereabouts. He was booked on felony hit-and-run charges, and was being held Friday in Van Nuys jail on $35,000 bail.

The pedestrian, a North Hollywood man who was not identified pending notification of his relatives, was taken to Providence Holy Cross Medical Center in Mission Hills with broken legs and a head injury, a hospital spokesman said.