BikinginLA

A man was killed in a Koreatown crash early Wednesday morning in what police initially thought was a hit-and-run.

Investigators at first thought the victim had been hit by a driver who fled the scene before being run over by a second vehicle.

But concluded the second driver had been the only one involved after reviewing video from a nearby security camera.

Early reports indicate the collision occurred at the intersection of Wilshire Blvd and Catalina Street in Koreatown at 3:30 am Wednesday, near the site of the former Ambassador Hotel, now the Robert F. Kennedy Community Schools.

According to KTLA-5, the victim, identified only as a Hispanic man in his 30s, was reportedly riding back and forth across Wilshire Blvd when he somehow came off his bike.

He was lying in the street when he was run over and dragged 30 feet by an oncoming car; he was apparently pronounced dead at the scene.

The driver stopped and cooperated with investigators.

The station places the crash scene a block west at Wilshire Boulevard just west of South Berendo Street; no explanation was given for the discrepancy.

The station also reports that coroners smelled alcohol at the scene, suggesting the victim may have been intoxicated, which could explain why he was was lying in the street. Although it does not explain why the driver failed to seem him or the bicycle next to him.

This is at least the ninth bicycling fatality in Southern California this year, and the fourth I’m aware of in Los Angeles County; it’s also the second in the City of Los Angeles.

My deepest sympathy and prayers for the victim and all his loved ones.

Thanks to Mike Wilkinson, Sindy Saito, David Drexler and John McBrearty for the heads-up. And my apologies for the delay in posting this.