Playa del Rey hit-and-run: Suspect in custody in crash that killed 1-year-old boy, his uncle

PLAYA DEL REY, LOS ANGELES () — A suspect has been taken into custody in connection with a hit-and-run crash that killed a 1-year-old boy and his uncle in Playa del Rey.

LAPD’s West Traffic Division confirmed to Eyewitness News on Wednesday that a suspect is in custody, but officials did not immediately release further details.

The deadly crash happened just after 4:30 a.m. on Sunday at Vista Del Mar and Culver Boulevard.

Oscar Sandoval and his family were heading home after a fun night on the beach in Playa del Rey.

The family piled into the car, but seconds after Sandoval started driving, tragedy struck: a hit-and-run driver slammed into his sedan.

Sandoval’s 1-year-old son, Roger, and his 25-year-old brother, Oswaldo, were killed in the crash.

Speaking with Eyewitness News on Monday, Sandoval clutched a small teddy bear onesie – the last thing he can still touch to feel connected to his baby. It was the same outfit Sandoval had to pull off his son while desperately trying to save the child’s life on the side of the road early Sunday morning.

Sandoval was behind the wheel when he and police say a speeding white Jeep SUV slammed into his sedan on the passenger side at Vista Del Mar Avenue and Culver Boulevard in Playa del Rey. Sandoval said the suspect “tried to get me.”

Witnesses say the driver bailed out of the SUV and sprinted from the deadly scene. A witness captured the aftermath of the crash. The video appears to show the driver frantically running away from the scene.

Sandoval said he tried to run after the man, but a broken rib left him gasping for air.

He recalled going back to the car and seeing his child bleeding.

“Then I see my brother, his face, his chest… God, it’s hard,” Sandoval said.

Sandoval said Roger and Oswaldo were both dead inside the car. His 15-year-old sister was severely injured.

A GoFundMe account has been set up to help the family.