3 Die, 2 Hurt in Anaheim Hit-Run Crash

Three Anaheim co-workers were dead Saturday and two others badly injured after a van, driven by a man who allegedly had stolen two bottles of liquor from a bar and was fleeing from police, struck their car.

An officer spotted Angel Montero Avila, 42, running a red light in Fullerton and chased him eastbound on the Riverside Freeway late Friday evening, police said. The officer did not know Avila was suspected of theft.

The officer lost the van and turned off his siren, but Avila continued speeding, said Anaheim Police Sgt. Rick Martinez. Avila left the freeway at Raymond Avenue in Anaheim, lost control of his van and drove through an intersection, striking a Toyota.

He fled on foot and was arrested two hours later in a nearby backyard, Martinez said. Avila, of Anaheim, was booked on suspicion of homicide, felony hit-and-run and driving under the influence, Martinez said.

Killed in the accident were Guadalupe Ramirez, 39; Francisco Brito, 20; and Francisco Martinez, also 20, all of Anaheim. Two others, a man, 21, and a woman, 29, were taken to hospitals, where the man was reported in critical condition and the woman as stable, Martinez said.

He said the five victims were carpooling to a night shift at a manufacturing firm in Anaheim Hills.

“It’s really a sad case,” Martinez said. “It’s very tough for the family members and tough for the employees -- they are taking the loss very deeply.”

Ramirez, who was driving, and one of her passengers were declared dead at the scene. The other man, Martinez said, died at a hospital.

Police later learned that Avila, who was found in the 1300 block of Norwood Street, matched the description of a man who had earlier been seen running from the Diamante Bar in the 500 block of South Euclid Street in Fullerton carrying two bottles of liquor.

An unidentified passenger in his van is believed to have sustained minor injuries, Martinez said, but was not hospitalized and has not been arrested.