Long Beach police are looking for a driver in an orange BMW sedan they believe is responsible for a deadly hit-and-run crash last night.
Police said the BMW was headed eastbound on Sixth Street near downtown Long Beach when the driver ran a red light at Atlantic Avenue around 10:14 p.m. In the intersection, the BMW hit a Nissan Altima headed south on Atlantic and then a Kia Soul headed north on Atlantic.
Video from the scene showed the Altima on its roof, with airbags deployed. A man and a woman who’d been in the back seat of the Altima died at the scene. The driver and another passenger were hospitalized but expected to survive, the Long Beach Police Department said.
The Kia’s driver was also hospitalized with non-life-threatening injuries, police said.
The BMW’s driver fled before officers arrived, according to the LBPD, and investigators suspect excessive speed was a factor in the crash.
Authorities said the Altima’s passengers who died at the scene were Bobbi Smith, 24, and Gilberto Lopez, 21.
They asked anyone with more information about the crash or the BMW to contact Detective Edwin Paredes at 562-570-7110. Anonymous tips can be submitted through LACrimeStoppers.org.
City News Service and editor Jeremiah Dobruck contributed to this report.