LOS ANGELES, CA – Authorities have identified a person of interest in what investigators describe as an allegedly intentional hit-and-run that killed a 16-year-old boy near BMO Stadium in Exposition Park last week.
The incident began on Nov. 22 around 4:30 p.m. with an altercation between a group of approximately 40 bicyclists and a motorist in a blue BMW on Figueroa Street, just north of Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard, according to the California Highway Patrol (CHP).
The confrontation escalated into the parking lot of BMO Stadium, where Jonathan Flores, the teenage victim, was fatally struck by a black Honda sedan. Flores was pronounced dead at the scene.
On Nov. 23, CHP detectives executed a search warrant at a Los Angeles residence linked to the investigation, seizing a blue 2021 BMW sedan and a black 2018 Honda Accord.
A 28-year-old man from Los Angeles has been identified as a person of interest and is believed to have been driving the Honda Accord when it struck Flores. The CHP has not confirmed if the individual is in custody.
“During the investigation, a 28-year-old Hispanic male from Los Angeles was identified as a person of interest who is believed to have been the driver of the Honda Accord at the time it struck and killed the 16-year-old juvenile,” CHP said in a statement.
The case has sparked criticism of penalties for hit-and-run incidents.
Earl Ofari Hutchinson, president of the Los Angeles Urban Policy Roundtable, expressed frustration with the perceived leniency of current laws.
“The penalties for hit-and-run, road rage are laughable,” Hutchinson said. “It’s a misdemeanor with only a few days in jail. You’re talking about a major, not only felony—it should be—but loss of life, and yet we have such lax enforcement.”
CHP investigators are urging anyone with information about the incident or the driver to contact their Major Crime Unit at 323-644-9550 or the L.A. Communications Center at 323-259-3200 outside normal business hours.
The investigation remains ongoing as Flores’ family and community mourn the loss of the teenager.
