A motorist who was driving the wrong way on the 710 freeway near Paramount crashed head-on into a marked police car, injuring four people, the California Highway Patrol said Sunday.
Osvaldo Castanon, 20, of Long Beach, was traveling southbound in the number two northbound lane of the freeway when he struck a Union Pacific Railroad police officer's car near the 105 Freeway about 3:25 a.m. Saturday.
Castanon was driving a 1980 Chevrolet with his headlights off, the CHP said.
The officer, driving a 2011 Ford, escaped with only minor injuries. Paramedics transported him to St. Francis Medical Center in Lynwood, according to the CHP.
Paramedics rushed Castanon to St. Francis Medical Center with major internal injuries.
One of the passengers in Castanon's car, a 21-year-old Long Beach man, suffered moderate injuries.
Two other passengers, a 23-year-old Long Beach man and a 23-year-old Bellflower man, suffered minor injuries. Paramedics transported the Long Beach man to St. Francis Medical Center and the Bellflower man to Long Beach Memorial Hospital.
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Castanon was later arrested, the CHP said. It was not immediately clear what charges he was facing.
Under state law, railroad police are sworn law enforcement officers with full police powers.
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