Two pedestrians lost their lives in a violent early morning collision in North Hollywood when a suspected drunken driver slammed into them on a residential stretch of road. The crash took place around 2:25 a.m. on April 12, 2026, in the 6100 block of Colfax Avenue just north of Calvert Street, a busy corridor in the San Fernando Valley section of Los Angeles where parked cars often line the curb near homes and small businesses.
A gray Acura driven northbound by 31-year-old Vidal Cruz Jr. of Pacoima approached at unsafe speed and struck two people who had just stepped out of the driver side of a white Toyota Camry that was idling along the shoulder. The Camry carried five people total, with the two pedestrians exiting while three others remained seated inside; the impact hurled the pair northward before they slammed into the roadway, and the Acura also clipped the Camry itself.
The male victim, 35-year-old Nefi Lopez Gutierrez of El Monte, suffered multiple blunt-force traumatic injuries and was pronounced dead at the scene by Los Angeles Fire Department paramedics. The female victim, 50-year-old Azusena Gonzalez of North Hollywood, sustained similar devastating blunt-traumatic injuries, was rushed by ambulance to a hospital, and later succumbed there. The three remaining occupants inside the Camry escaped with only minor injuries.
After the initial strike, the Acura did not stop. Cruz continued northeast, veered off the street, and entered a private driveway where the vehicle plowed into several unoccupied parked cars before finally smashing into a residential house. No one inside the home was hurt, and the chain-reaction damage underscored the high velocity involved in the initial pedestrian strike.
Cruz was arrested at the scene and taken to a hospital for treatment before being booked later that day on two counts of murder at Van Nuys Jail. Investigators determined alcohol was a factor, with the driver operating under the influence while speeding through the neighborhood. He remained in custody in lieu of $4 million bail as the Los Angeles Police Department’s Valley Traffic Division continued its probe.
On April 14, 2026, the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office formally charged Vidal Cruz Jr. with two counts of murder in case 26VWCF00785. He pleaded not guilty at his first court appearance and is scheduled to return to Van Nuys Courthouse on May 27 for a preliminary hearing. If convicted as charged, he faces up to life in state prison, a stark reminder of the consequences of impaired driving as stated by District Attorney Nathan Hochman.
