An elderly man crashed his car in Hillcrest Sunday after being attacked by a man in his backseat who fled and was later taken into custody.
The crash happened around 8:30 a.m. on Robinson Avenue west of 6th Avenue, according to OnScene.TV.
The driver had been trying to help a family friend by taking the suspect, who was having mental health issues, to a hospital.
The passenger reached over the seat and began to strangle the driver, causing him to lose consciousness and hit a light pole in the 500 block of Robinson.
The suspect fled, running east on Robinson. Meanwhile, someone pulled the victim out of the vehicle and left him on the sidewalk. San Diego firefighters arrived to aid the driver, who came to and was sent to a hospital.
San Diego police, OnScene reported, took the suspect into custody, possibly following the beating of an elderly female at Richmond Street and Myrtle Avenue. The victim in the second incident may have been the suspect’s mother.
Originally posted 2023-10-23 00:10:22.