A 19-year-old died and a suspect was hospitalized in a bizarre and tragic series of events on L.A.'s Eastside Sunday.

According to reports the victim, identified by ABC Los Angeles as Oscar Perez, was with his brother in a Nissan when someone in an SUV allegedly struck the car and then attempted to get away east of downtown.

The duo caught up with the motorist after he crashed into a pole nearby and exchanged information but, as they were doing so, someone allegedly got into the running Nissan and started to drive off, the station said.

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Perez jumped on the hood and tried to stop the thief, but he sped off and swerved in an attempt to get the teen off the car, police alleged in reports.

Then, at 3:50 p.m., the L.A. Fire Department reported that the events ended in tragedy: A car went into a building at 3544 E Olympic Blvd., with one person dead at the scene and another seriously injured.


The dead man was later ID'd in reports as teen Perez. The suspect was the one who reportedly survived.

A witness told ABC Los Angeles that the reportedly stolen car was moving fast before it crashed:

“There was a black car, and he was dragging a boy, apparently a young man trying to stop the car as they were making a turn, so they were coming at pretty much a high speed,” Sergio Espinoza said. 

Los Angeles Police Department Capt. Martin A. Baeza, said the location of the crash was a homicide scene and that the man alleged to have taken the car was in custody, ostensibly at a hospital.

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