San Jose man arrested in connection with fatal hit-and-run

SAN JOSE — A 33-year-old San Jose man was arrested Wednesday in connection with a fatal hit-and-run collision two days earlier near the SAP Center, according to authorities.

The collision happened around 8 a.m. Monday at the intersection of Santa Clara and Cahill streets, San Jose police Officer Tanya Hernandez said in a news release.

The suspect was driving a black 2021 Ram pickup truck eastbound on Santa Clara Street when he hit a woman riding an electric scooter northbound in the east crosswalk, Hernandez said.

The woman was taken to an area hospital, where she died of her injuries. The Santa Clara County Medical Examiner-Coroner’s Office identified her as Monica Violete Ibarra, 52, of San Francisco.

The death was the 24th traffic fatality of the year on city streets.

The driver did not stop at the scene, Hernandez said, adding that officers later found the truck unoccupied. The truck was determined to be an unreported stolen vehicle.

Detectives, with the assistance of patrol officers, identified the suspect as Justin Perez and obtained warrants for his arrest and to search his residence, Hernandez said. On Wednesday, he was taken into custody in San Jose and booked into the Santa Clara County Main Jail on charges related to hit-and-run and vehicular manslaughter.

Perez is being held on $530,000 bail, according to jail records.

Anyone with information related to the case can contact Detective Ryan Leslie of the SJPD Traffic Investigations Unit at 4264@sanjoseca.gov or 408-277-4654. Tips can also be left with Silicon Valley Crime Stoppers at 408-947-7867 or at siliconvalleycrimestoppers.org.