The 61-year-old driver of a minivan that crashed outside a Los Angeles metro station, who killed three women and critically injured two others, was arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence and three counts of murder, police said Wednesday.
Police identified the driver as Ihor Demianenko, who said he was able to talk but appeared to be in shock after Tuesday's crash, which hit pedestrians and food vendors at a busy intersection in the North Hollywood neighborhood during the height of rush hour.
Demianenko was booked early Wednesday and his bail was set at a little over $6 million, records show. He was treated for minor injuries at a hospital, police said.
On Tuesday night, the minivan could be seen on the sidewalk, surrounded by debris with its driver’s side door left open and an airbag deployed.
Fire engines and emergency crews worked nearby as a helicopter flew overhead.
Los Angeles Police Captain Warner Castillo said officials were not immediately able to determine the cause of the crash.
“We don’t know if this was done intentionally [or] if it was done by accident,” Castillo said at a news conference.
LAPD Chief Jim McDonnell said investigators will now go through video footage of the crash frame by frame.
“It will probably be a prolonged but very deliberate investigation to determine what happened here,” he said.
Luis Luna-Guzman was working at a burger stand nearby when he heard a loud boom and saw people on the ground along with food and cups. People nearby started running toward the crash.
As he moved closer, he found an injured woman lying near the bike racks, her face, arms and legs bloody; he said, recalling that her eyes were closed as she moaned in pain.
“I told her, ‘Don’t move, help is coming,’” Luna-Guzman said, adding that he saw a woman's body nearby, while another woman was lying unmoving on the stairs leading to the station.
One entrance to the metro remained closed Tuesday night, but otherwise the property was not impacted, and the stations for the bus and subway were open, according to Jose Ubaldo, spokesperson for the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority.
