Motorist arrested after cyclist killed in hit-and-run DUI in Huntington Beach

Huntington Beach police Monday arrested a 68-year-old Orange resident on suspicion of second-degree murder and DUI, after he allegedly struck and killed a bicyclist near the intersection of Beach Boulevard and Glencoe Drive, officials reported.

The incident took place after midnight, when first responders were called to the scene and found the bicyclist, a 51-year-old woman, unresponsive, according to a Huntington Beach Police Department release issued Monday.

She was transported to a local hospital, where she succumbed to her injuries. Sheriff’s spokesman Sgt. Matthew Parrish on Monday said officials with the Orange County coroner’s office had identified the woman as Kristin Bellovich, whose city of residence was unknown.

The driver of the gray 2023 Ford Bronco that reportedly struck the bicyclist fled the scene following the crash but was later found by police, the release indicated.

The driver of that vehicle, Elias Madriz Gutierrez, was arrested just before 1 a.m. and booked on charges of DUI causing bodily injury, gross vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated and a hit-and-run resulting in death or injury, according to HBPD’s online arrest log.

Gutierrez is currently being held in an Orange County jail. He was previously convicted on two misdemeanor counts of driving under the influence in 2018, stemming from an incident that occurred on Feb. 18 of that year, and was sentenced to three years’ probation, Orange County Superior Court records indicate.

Investigation into the crash is being handled by Huntington Beach Police’s Multidisciplinary Accident Investigation Team. Anyone who may have witnessed the collision or the events leading up to it is encouraged to contact HBPD Traffic Investigator Vishal Rattanchandani at (714) 536-5231.