70-year-old dies after woman runs over him with his own car, California police say
A 70-year-old man died after a woman intentionally ran him over with his own car and fled, California authorities said.
Sonia Sovereign, 32, is accused of driving Valeriy Saakyan’s car and striking him in a parking lot at Griffith Park in Los Angeles on Saturday, Oct. 8 at about 3 p.m., a news release from the Los Angeles Police Department said.
Saakyan “lost his footing, fell to the ground and was intentionally run over by his own vehicle,” police said. Lt. Daniel Ramirez told ABC7 that an argument happened before the accident.
Sovereign then fled in the car, according to police.
Los Angeles Fire Department paramedics took Saakyan to a hospital, where he died, police said.
The next day, Hollywood Patrol officers spotted a car “with traffic collision damage and a blue tarp over it,” the release said.
Police said the officers found out the car “had a felony want” connected to a hit-and-run and arrested Sovereign.
During an interview with police, Sovereign “confessed to the crime,” police said.
Bail was set at $1 million for Sovereign, who is facing a murder charge, according to police.
This story was originally published October 10, 2022 at 12:43 PM with the headline "70-year-old dies after woman runs over him with his own car, California police say."
