The Fullerton man accused of fatally striking a motorcyclist with his BMW was driving at more than 100 mph and ran a red light while driving drunk, prosecutors said.
He now faces charges for vehicular manslaughter and other felonies.
Francisco Garcia-Vargas, 44, hit a motorcyclist who was stopped at a red light, ejecting the biker off his vehicle, at Orangethorpe Avenue and Gilbert Street around 9:45 p.m. Wednesday night, officials said in a news release.
That motorcyclist, 28-year-old Alexander Marce, was declared dead at the scene.
Garcia-Vargas tried to drive off in his 1999 BMW 323i with the black 2019 Harley-Davidson motorcycle still trapped underneath, authorities said. He made it “a few hundred yards … before finally coming to a stop,” according to a news release from Orange County District Attorney Todd Spitzer.
“People who witnessed the collision pulled Garcia-Vargas from his vehicle and held him until police arrived,” the release said.
At the time of the collision, Garcia-Vargas had a blood alcohol level of almost three times the legal limit and was driving at more than 100 mph toward a red light without slowing down, prosecutors said.
He’s been charged with three felonies:
- Gross vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated
- Driving under the influence of alcohol causing injury
- Driving with a blood alcohol content of .08% or higher
His arraignment was scheduled for Friday and jail records indicate he is being held at the Intake Release Center.
If convicted on all counts, Garcia-Vargas faces a maximum sentence of 10 years in state prison.
After the fatal crash, another collision made headlines, as a Tesla in self-drive mode struck a police cruiser.