A 21-year-old Hemet man was arrested on suspicion of murder and driving under the influence after the California Highway Patrol said he ran a red light, fatally struck a 71-year-old woman in a crosswalk and fled to a casino.
The collision happened about 11:15 p.m. on Saturday, Sept. 20. William David Camarena was arrested early Sunday at the Soboba Casino Resort near San Jacinto, a CHP news release said.
The crash killed Hemet resident Debra Y. Dean. She was crossing Florida Avenue, also known as Highway 74, at Columbia Street when she was hit, the CHP said.
The release did not say how investigators found Camarena.
Camarena was arrested on suspicion of murder because after a previous arrest, he had received the so-called Watson advisement in which a person signs a document that acknowledges he understands he could be charged with murder if he is drunk and kills a person while driving.
Officer Ricardo Palomera, a CHP spokesman, referred questions about the circumstances of that arrest to the Riverside County District Attorney’s Office. Palomera said the previous arrest was not a DUI case. The DA’s Office had not responded to a request for details as of Tuesday afternoon.
Camarena was being held without bail at Larry D. Smith Correctional Facility in Banning. He had not been charged as of Tuesday.
The CHP asks anyone with information on the collision to call 951-846-5300.
