– Man arrested after intentional hit-and-run in Thousand Palms
– Man arrested for intentional hit-and-run in Thousand Palms.
Accident – Death – Obituary News :
A 48-year-old valley resident tragically lost his life in Thousand Palms on Sunday afternoon in what authorities have described as a deliberate hit-and-run incident. The California Highway Patrol swiftly arrested a suspect, who has been charged with murder with malice aforethought.
Riverside County Sheriff’s Department deputies were called to the scene of the collision at Varner Road and Ramon Road around 1:30 p.m. on Sunday. Following an initial investigation by California Highway Patrol officers, it was determined that the incident was intentional. This led to the sheriff’s department taking over the case, as stated in a press release issued on Monday.
The area where the tragic incident occurred was immediately closed off to all pedestrian and vehicle traffic. Sheriff’s deputies from the Palm Desert Station and the Central Homicide Unit, alongside the coroner’s bureau, began their thorough investigation into the matter.
Although specific details about the crash were not disclosed by the department, the victim has been identified as Robert Ernest Rodriguez, a 48-year-old resident of Desert Hot Springs.
The suspect, Erik Robert Cowdery, a 30-year-old Palm Desert resident, was swiftly apprehended on the same afternoon and subsequently booked into the John Benoit Detention Center at 1 a.m. on Monday. Jail records indicate that Cowdery is scheduled for a court hearing at the Larson Justice Center in Indio on Wednesday morning.
The investigation into this tragic incident is ongoing. Individuals with any information relevant to the case are urged to contact Investigator Cline at the Central Homicide Unit on (951) 955-2777 or Investigator Munoz at the Palm Desert Station on (760) 836-1600.
Tom Coulter reports on Palm Desert, La Quinta, Rancho Mirage, and Indian Wells. He can be reached at thomas.coulter@desertsun.com.
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– Man arrested after intentional hit-and-run in Thousand Palms
– Victim ID’d in intentional hit-and-run in Thousand Palms.
