Los Angeles police have asked for the public’s help in identifying the three drivers who struck a man in Pacoima on Jan. 12 and the motorist who hit a woman the next day on Van Nuys Boulevard.
The hit-and-runs, which killed both pedestrians, are not related.
There is a $50,000 reward offered on the Pacoima hit-and-run, which happened at 11:55 p.m. on San Fernando Road when a white pickup truck driving the wrong way hit man while approaching Montague Street.
He was thrown into another lane and struck by a gray sport-utility vehicle and finally a silver sedan, with a video camera catching what happened.
It shows the man, who authorities said was 42-year-old Francisco Garcia and homeless, moving after he was hit by the pickup and ended up on the northbound lane. Then the SUV hit him. The sedan slowed down after hitting the man but didn’t stop.
The second hit-and-run was reported to police at 12:45 a.m. on Van Nuys Boulevard at Valerio Street. A white pickup truck heading south struck the woman crossing the street.
“The driver kept going southbound,” said Officer Michael Sison, who is investigating the hit-and-run.
The woman, who authorities identified as 58-year-old Brenda Byrnes and said lived by herself nearby, was scooting across Van Nuys: She was seated on the road and would straighten out her legs and bend them and use her arms to move forward.
Brenda Byrnes, 58, died of blunt traumatic injuries, according to the medical examiner’s office.
“We’re still trying to figure out what (she was) doing out there,” Sison said.
He described the pickup as having storage compartments on the bed of the truck with a red ladder on top.
Edward Byrnes said his sister had recently left him a message.
“Nothing to do with killing herself,” he said, adding she was between jobs.
She had worked with music groups on the road like Duran Duran as a costume person, he said.
Edward Byrnes, who was told how she was crossing the road, said she didn’t have a disability.
Police asked anyone with information about any of the drivers or the collisions to call them at 818-644-8022 or at 818-644-8115. Anonymous tipsters can contact Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477 or at lacrimestoppers.org.