LOS ANGELES, CA – One person was killed and three others remained hospitalized after a four-vehicle collision in Moreno Valley that left several vehicles with major damage and prompted a traffic reconstruction investigation, authorities said.
Deputies with the Riverside County Sheriff’s Office responded Friday evening, Aug. 28, to the intersection of Iris Avenue and Lasselle Street following reports of a serious traffic collision.
When deputies arrived, they found four vehicles involved in the crash with what the Sheriff’s Office described as major collision damage. Four people were transported from the scene to a local hospital in critical condition.
One of those patients later died.
Authorities identified the man as David Betts, 65, of Menifee. The Riverside County Sheriff-Coroner subsequently confirmed Betts’ identity and said he died at Riverside University Health System Medical Center in Moreno Valley. His next of kin had been notified.
The conditions of the other three people taken to the hospital have not been publicly updated.
Information reviewed by Street People shows that investigators with the Moreno Valley Sheriff’s Station’s Traffic Reconstruction Team responded to the scene and assumed responsibility for determining how the four-vehicle collision occurred.
Authorities have not disclosed the sequence of impacts, which vehicle Betts was occupying, the identities of the other drivers or passengers, or whether speed or another traffic violation contributed to the crash.
Investigators have also not determined whether alcohol or drugs played a role.
The Sheriff’s Office said no arrests have been made and emphasized that the circumstances surrounding the collision remain under investigation.
“No arrests have been made; however, this investigation remains ongoing, and no further details are available at this time,” the department said.
The collision occurred at Iris Avenue and Lasselle Street, an intersection in southeastern Moreno Valley. Authorities have not announced whether investigators expect additional road closures or traffic-control measures connected to the investigation.
The case remains centered on reconstructing what happened immediately before the vehicles collided. Traffic reconstruction investigations can include examinations of vehicle damage, roadway evidence and other material gathered at the scene, although the Sheriff’s Office has not publicly detailed what evidence has been collected in this particular case.
Officials also have not said whether any of the vehicles contained additional occupants who escaped serious injury.
The fatal crash came as the Moreno Valley Sheriff’s Station was separately reminding drivers about roadway safety ahead of September’s Pedestrian Safety Month. In an Aug. 28 public safety advisory, the department urged motorists to follow speed limits, avoid distractions and never drive while impaired. The advisory was general traffic-safety guidance and was not presented by authorities as being connected to the Iris Avenue collision.
For the Moreno Valley crash itself, investigators have not publicly attributed fault to any driver.
The Sheriff-Coroner’s record lists the case under file number 2026-06408, with the Riverside County Sheriff’s Office Moreno Valley Station identified as the investigating agency.
Authorities are asking anyone who witnessed the crash or has information that could assist investigators to contact Deputy Jason Fernandez of the Moreno Valley Sheriff’s Station at 951-486-6700, or Riverside County Sheriff’s Dispatch at 951-776-1099. The county also maintains official Sheriff’s non-emergency contact information for residents seeking to report information that does not require an immediate emergency response.
The investigation remains ongoing.
