Sacramento man killed riding scooter on Capital City Freeway after he’s struck by two cars

A Sacramento man was killed in a crash on Capital City Freeway early Saturday while riding an electric rental scooter, according to the California Highway Patrol.

In a news release, the CHP’s south Sacramento office said that the rider was hit on northbound Capital City Freeway, south of the American River Bridge, just after 3 a.m.

The Sacramento County Coroner’s Office identified the Sacramento resident as Carlos Chavez, 21.

CHP investigators believe that a Nissan Altima, driven by a 31-year-old Sacramento man, hit Chavez while he was riding on the highway. The driver told officers that he hit the scooter after it rode ahead of him.

Responding officers found Chavez in the roadway “with obvious fatal injuries,” along with the rental scooter, which had been badly damaged. The driver of the Altima pulled over after the collision, called 911 and waited for CHP to arrive.

Shortly before the crash, CHP dispatchers received reports of a scooter rider in the center median of northbound Capital City Freeway.

Just after the crash, Chavez was hit by another driver in a Toyota 4Runner headed north on the highway up to Thunder Valley Casino. After calling authorities at 3:19 a.m. to report hitting an unknown object in the roadway, Auburn CHP officers contacted her at the casino and confirmed that her vehicle had struck Chavez after the initial collision with the Altima.

Chavez was declared dead at the scene by fire personnel. CHP investigators are still unsure if drugs or alcohol were a factor in the crash.

This story was originally published July 3, 2021 at 3:13 PM.