Four people, including several children, were injured when a 49-year-old man drove into the front of a Truckee Safeway this afternoon, city police said in a statement.
The incident occurred Saturday at the entrance of a grocery store in the picturesque California mountain town, police said, as cited by the Associated Press.
The grocery store is located about a mile east of downtown Truckee, in a shopping strip on Donner Pass Road.
Police said they believe the man, who is from the San Joaquin Valley town of Coalinga, intentionally struck the pedestrian and the business.
According to the San Francisco Chronicle, officers from the Truckee Police Department responded to a report of “a vehicle that had crashed into several pedestrians near the front entrance of Safeway.”
Video obtained by CBS Sacramento showed the vehicle crashing into the Safeway building.
Eyewitness testimony
Scotty Mathewson, 39, said he was shopping with his wife when he heard the crash and frantic screaming, the AP reported.
While his wife called 911, Mathewson helped others make sure no one was trapped under the debris or the pickup truck.
Mathewson told the AP that the boys’ baseball team was raising money at a table outside the store, and when he ran to help, parents were desperately trying to reunite with their children.
Mathewson also said pedestrians and shoppers yelled at the driver and tried to open the vehicle, but its doors were locked.
He added that the driver “sat there calmly” until police arrived and arrested him minutes later.
Driver booked
The 49-year-old driver was charged with assault with a deadly weapon, criminal vandalism and violation of probation.
He was incarcerated at a facility in Nevada City, the Nevada County seat about an hour’s drive from Truckee on the other side of a 7,000-foot mountain pass.
He was booked into the Wayne Brown Correctional Facility in Nevada City on charges of assault with a deadly weapon, aggravated vandalism and “violating the terms of his post-release community supervision,” authorities told CBS News.
Officials did not provide further details about the conditions of his supervision or why he was subject to them.
As of Saturday evening, no public contact or legal representation had yet been issued for the driver.
Home to about 17,000 residents, Truckee is known for its pristine winter beauty and proximity to Lake Tahoe and Donner Lake.
February is typically a busy month for winter sports here, including skiing, snowboarding and snowshoeing.
