Photo: Isaiah Peoples
SUNNYVALE – A Sunnyvale man who tried to run down at least seven pedestrians is now facing eight felony attempted murder charges. “We responded to a major accident on El Camino and Sunnyvale Avenue,” Capt. Jim Choi with the Sunnyvale Department of Public Safety said.
The suspect, Isaiah Peoples, was identified at the scene. He told police that he had purposely run into pedestrians in an attempt to injure them. Peoples was reported to have shown no emotion or remorse for his actions at the time of the incident.
A woman was first hit by Peoples prior to him coming to the crosswalk near El Camino, where he struck several people, including a 13-year-old girl, who is currently listed in critical condition. Her 9-year-old brother was saved by their father as he tried to push the boy from the trajectory of the car. However, he was unable to free his daughter from being hit by Peoples.
A bicyclist was also hit, sustaining non-life-threatening injuries. A total of eight people were threatened and/or hurt by Peoples’ rampage.
Peoples was thought to have exceeded the speed limit of more than 60 mph as he crashed into pedestrians before eventually crashing into a tree just feet away from his victims.
Officials did not believe that the incident was an act of terrorism, but an act by a mentally ill veteran. Peoples served in the Iraq war and was currently working in Sunnyvale as an analyst for the Department of Defense. His mother reported to several media outlets that she suspected her son was having a PTSD episode.
Peoples is expected to be held on a no-bail warrant and is currently housed at the Santa Clara County Main Jail.
Driver charged with eight counts of attempted murder was last modified: April 29th, 2019 by
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Santa Clara
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attempted murder
