A San Diego woman who was struck by an armored car in a La Jolla Village shopping center was pronounced dead at the hospital.
The woman, Mikaela Jones, was celebrating her 22nd birthday and meeting her boyfriend when she was hit, dragged and fatally injured by an armored car. Jones had just parked her vehicle and was walking toward her boyfriend who was across the street when she was hit by the vehicle.
Jones had her dog with her, who got loose in the parking lot. She was struck by the vehicle while chasing down her dog. The dog was uninjured in the accident.
“We don’t know if she thought the vehicle would stop because she was a pedestrian or if she was distracted by the dog or what have you,” said Lt. Andra Brown of the San Diego Police Department. “We just know she walked out in front of him and was struck.”
Jones was dragged for a distance after being struck by the vehicle.
Witnesses say that they heard Jones arguing with her boyfriend, Hunter Chenier, just seconds before the dog got loose. An officer was later seen consoling the man, who collapsed to the ground after learning his girlfriend was pronounced dead at the hospital.
At this time, police do not believe that the argument played a role in the accident.
“This (Garda) truck comes around the corner kind of fast and she was worried about the dog so she was waving her arms and then the truck just kind of slammed her and she went under the front and back wheels,” Chenier recalled. “I ran up to her and was just making sure she was talking and she was talking, so that was a good sign.”
Chenier witnessed the accident. He said he was going to take her for a nice dinner.
“It was her 22nd birthday,” he said.
The driver of the armored vehicle was making its rounds at the shopping center and failed to see the victim standing in the street when turning the corner. It is unclear whether Jones had been waving her arms to stop the driver or to wave at someone across the street. The driver remained at the scene and was cooperative with authorities. Alcohol is not suspected as a factor in the accident.
Jones was taken to Scripps Memorial Hospital in La Jolla, but was pronounced dead. The medical examiner’s office said she could not be resuscitated “despite lifesaving efforts.”
Tragic news of the accident comes as police continue their search for two suspects who robbed an armored truck in Las Vegas. The robbery occurred on the 6000 block of Tropicana Avenue. Police say the suspects were armed with a firearm and left the area after robbing a Loomis armored truck employee.
The robbery occurred at 10:01 am.
Police say the suspects are two black men, one wearing a black hoodie and the other wearing a red hoodie. Both are believed to be armed and dangerous.
No one was injured in the robbery. The suspects are still at large. The LVMPD said this is an active, ongoing investigation.