Whittier crash: Suspect accused of ‘deliberately’ driving into sheriff recruits released

The investigation into the incident is ongoing.

The number of injured has since increased to 25.

The 22-year-old driver, who was detained at the scene of the crash, is reportedly cooperating with authorities, police say.

The man, whose name has not been released, reportedly told police he was “sleepy” at the time of the accident, the Los Angeles Times reported.

At the time, officers said they didn’t detect an odour of alcohol on his breath and the 22-year-old later passed a field sobriety test after he blew 0.0, NBC News reported.

According to the local sheriff’s department, the driver veered from the southbound lane and plowed into recruits who were running in formation on the edge of the northbound lane adjacent to the curb.

The recruits were running in four columns with eight road guards who wear reflective high-visibility vests.

In addition to that, drill instructors and safety vehicles accompanied recruits on the run.

Sheriff Alex Villanueva spoke with the recruits who were running at the front of the formation.

“It happened so quickly,” Mr Villanueva told a press conference. “They jumped out of the way, but the people behind had no chance. They never saw it.”

It is estimated that the SUV was traveling at between 30 to 40mph, and there were no signs of skid marks on the roadway. The vehicle then hit a light pole bringing it to a stop and destroying the front end.

Angelica Musick, the girlfriend of one of the victims, told Good Day LA that her boyfriend said the driver still had his foot on the accelerator and he had attempted to break the car’s window to make him stop.

The investigation continues.

At least 25 police recruits have been injured after a group of trainees was struck by a vehicle driven by a 22-year-old man while they were out for a morning run in the Los Angeles suburb of Whittier.

Here, Gustaf Kilander provides an update on everything that we know about the suspect, when the crash happened, who the victims are and what condition they’re in.

Five of the recruits are in critical condition, which were described by officials as being “life altering”, while four suffered moderate injuries, and 14, including the driver, are being treated for minor injuries, according to the Los Angeles Fire Department.

There is little information currently available about the driver of the car.

What is known is that the driver is a 22-year-old Hispanic man, who was detained at the scene of the crash. He is being treated for minor injuries resulting from the incident and reportedly is cooperating with police.

The Los Angeles Times reports that the man told police he was “sleepy” at the time of the accident. Law enforcement officials said they did not detect the odour of alcohol on the man’s breath.

Later, LAPD Sheriff Alex Villanueva confirmed that the 22-year-old had passed a field sobriety test after the crash and blew 0.0 in a blood alcohol test.

Here, The Independent breaks down everything we know about the driver in the crash that injured at least 25 police recruits.

A witness, only identified as Joseph, told ABC7 that “the street is really dangerous and it’s a main street but there’s so much foot traffic and also just regular traffic and there’s always people speeding or driving drunk through here”.

He added that it’s not “uncommon to hear a crash outside of the house like that. But I’ve never seen something this bad”.

Joseph said that he and other residents rushed to help, bringing water and towels.

“The car was completely wrecked, like the whole front end was done,” he told ABC7. “The light pole was on the floor ... it was like three or four of us neighbours that came out because this has happened before. We’ve lived here for 10 years. It’s happened before like where a car crashes into a gate, but this was like ... no one could ever imagine for this to happen.”

“There were so many people. Everyone was kind of in various conditions, some were unconscious, some were still conscious, some with really bad injuries to their legs. There was people bleeding from their face,” he said.

“The sheriff’s academy ... like they run through here all the time so you feel kind of connected to them,” the witness told the local TV station. “So it was a really crazy thing to wake up to.”

Of the 25 recruits who were injured, two were from the Bell and Glendale police departments, one came from Pasadena forces and the remaining 20 were Los Angeles sheriff’s recruits, officials said.

In a statement on Twitter late Wednesday night, the Pasadena police force extended their “thoughts and prayers” to all of the recruits who were injured during the crash near Whittier.

“On behalf of the members of the Pasadena PD, we extend our thoughts and prayers to the recruits and agencies affected by the incident from earlier today. We wish all of the recruits a speedy recovery and we thank everyone who has expressed support and well wishes to our recruit.”