Dad charged with abandoning severely injured 4-year-old son at car wreck; boy later died in hospital (San Diego, California)

Notice that dad ANGELO FABIANI ARROYO has a history of DUI/DWI.

http://www.nbcsandiego.com/news/local/Preliminary-Hearing-Angelo-Fabiani-Arroyo-Father-Abandons-Boy-in-Crash-224112771.html

Hearing Begins for Father Accused of Abandoning Injured Son in Wreck

Angelo Fabiani Arroyo, 40, is accused of leaving his injured son behind in the wreckage after crashing his truck

By Monica Garske
Tuesday, Sep 17, 2013 | Updated 12:06 PM PDT

A preliminary hearing began Tuesday for a San Diego father accused of abandoning his critically injured 4-year-old son at the site of a car wreck off Interstate 5.

On Jun. 2, Angelo Fabiani Arroyo, 40, crashed his pickup truck on I-5 near Old Town San Diego and the Midway area, rolling the vehicle off the roadway. Arroyo’s 4-year-old son, Valentino, was also in the truck.

Arroyo’s vehicle wound up landing on its side on an embankment along Jefferson Street. Upon impact, little Valentino was partially ejected from his car seat and the truck.

Witnesses at the time told NBC 7 they could see they boy hanging out of the window of the wreckage.

According to California Highway Patrol officials, Arroyo took off running immediately after the crash, leaving Valentino behind.

CHP officials say Arroyo returned to the scene a moment later to unbuckle the boy from his car seat, but then got scared and took off running again.

Unstrapped, Valentino fell on his back and hit the concrete curb, falling approximately 10 feet from the truck to the ground, CHP Officer Juan Escobar said at the time of the crash.

Good Samaritans helped pull Valentino from the vehicle, and he was taken to Rady Children’s Hospital. The boy was badly injured and later died at the hospital.

Arroyo was arrested two days later – on Jun. 4 – in Imperial Beach and charged with a hit and run and child endangerment.

The father was arraigned on Jun. 6 and pleaded not guilty to both charges. During his emotionally-charged court appearance in June, Arroyo’s loved ones defended him, saying he panicked following the crash and was possibly disoriented.

One family friend called Arroyo a “beautiful, loving father” who suffered utter shock following the crash, adding, “He went crazy. He went crazy.”

A prosecutor revealed Arroyo was on probation at the time of the crash in connection with a DUI case from two years ago.

If convicted, Arroyo faces seven years in prison.

As of noon Tuesday, Arroyo’s preliminary hearing was underway.