Driver in deadly North Hollywood crash arrested on DUI and murder counts; bail set at over $6 million

LOS ANGELES, Nov 12 — Ihor Demianenko, 61, the driver who killed three women outside the North Hollywood Metro station, has been arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence and three counts of murder, Los Angeles police said Wednesday. He is being held on $6.03 million bail.

Suspected impaired driver struck crowd

According to the Los Angeles Police Department, Demianenko was driving a white Toyota Sienna south on Lankershim Boulevard, south of Chandler Boulevard, at about 5:55 p.m. on Tuesday (November 10) when, travelling at an unsafe speed, it veered to the right, ran off the road and collided with a light, striking pedestrians and food vendors on the sidewalk near the Metro station. Three women were killed and two other women were critically injured. Police said Demianenko was found to be under the influence of drugs or alcohol; he was able to talk but appeared to be in shock, and was treated for minor injuries. LAPD Chief Jim McDonnell inspected the scene, and police said the investigation continues.

$6.03 million bail; case not yet with prosecutors

According to Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department inmate records, Demianenko was booked early Wednesday at the LAPD's Valley Jail in Van Nuys and was being held in lieu of $6.03 million bail. The case had not been presented to the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office as of Wednesday afternoon, spokesperson Venusse Dunn said. In California, drivers under the influence of drugs or alcohol can be charged with murder under certain circumstances; the California Supreme Court ruled in 1981 that a driver who kills someone can be charged with second-degree murder if found to have acted with "wantonness and a conscious disregard for life" amounting to implied malice.

Community holds vigil for vendors

On Wednesday night, family, friends and community members gathered in North Hollywood to honour the street vendors killed in the alleged DUI crash and to pray for a friend still critically injured. By Thursday morning, the food vendors who usually gather outside the North Hollywood Metro station were gone.

(Sources: The Associated Press; Los Angeles Police Department; Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department records. The investigation continues and formal charges are pending. Photo: file image.)