17-year-old suspect arrested in fatal hit-and-run that killed toddler

Police arrested a 17-year-old boy who allegedly killed a 3-year-old girl and seriously injured her mother after he crashed into them while riding a dirt bike in rural Riverside County, authorities announced Friday.

The girl was struck by the hit-and-run dirt bike rider in the community of Mead Valley and died from her injuries Monday, according to her family.

Investigators with the California Highway Patrol found the teen suspect and the dirt bike, authorities said. He was taken into custody and booked at the Riverside Juvenile Hall on charges of vehicular manslaughter and hit-and-run causing fatal injuries, according to the CHP. The suspect’s name was not released because he is a minor.

The child, Odalys Navarro, was riding her bicycle on the dirt sidewalk in the rural community on Aug. 31 when she and her pregnant mother were hit from behind by a person riding a dirt bike, according to the CHP.

The mother and daughter were on their way home from the park when they were hit near the intersection of Steel Peak Drive and Palm Street shortly after 7:30 p.m., CHP Officer Javier Navarro said.

The two were hospitalized, and the girl’s mother, Rubi Navarro, said in a post that accompanied a GoFundMe campaign that she was seriously injured, but her daughter died. Rubi Navarro is five months pregnant, family members told news station KNBC 4.

“It is difficult to put into words the pain and anguish my family has endured since that fateful day,� Rubi Navarro said in the post. “The reckless driver, without a shred of humanity, callously fled the scene, leaving my family shattered and broken.�

Odalys would have turned 4 later this month, her mother said. The CHP did not release additional information about the suspect.

Jeff Greene, chief of staff for Riverside County Supervisor Kevin Jeffries, described the unincorporated community in Mead Valley as rural with limited lighting in some areas. The area is predominantly low-income Black and Latino families. The supervisor’s office has received complaints about off-road vehicles driving down the roads, and the county has requested funding to establish sidewalks in the area.

Anyone with information about the crash can contact CHP’s Riverside investigators at (951) 637-8000.