Montebello woman killed, 2 others injured in Redlands hit-and-run

A Montebello woman was killed and two other women badly injured in a hit-and-run crash on Saturday, Nov. 25, when a Kia collided with a semitruck at an intersection in an unincorporated area outside of Redlands, authorities said.

The collision occurred around 6:25 a.m. when a driver in a black Kia heading east on San Bernardino Avenue ran a red light and broadsided the semi traveling north on Alabama Street, the California Highway Patrol said in a news release.

The Redlands Fire Department described the Kia as “mangled” and said one passenger had to be cut from the vehicle. All three Kia passengers were taken to Loma Linda University Medical Center in critical condition.

One died from her injuries, the CHP said. The San Bernardino County Coroner’s Office identified her as Valerie D. Ibarra, 38.

The other two victims were still in critical condition on Monday, said Sgt. Tyson Lomenick, a CHP spokesman. They were a 31-year-old San Bernardino resident and a 38-year-old Redlands resident.

The driver, meanwhile, ran from the wreckage and was still being sought on Monday, Lomenick said.

The CHP was still trying to identify him, with investigators looking for surveillance video.

The Kia’s owner was one of the passengers, Lomenick said. The CHP doesn’t know why that person was not driving, the sergeant said, why the driver fled and his relationship to the passengers.

The truck driver, a 38-year-old resident of Rancho Cucamonga, suffered minor injuries, the CHP said.

CHP officials asked anyone with information on the collision to call them at 909-383-4247.