A street fight turned into a fatal hit-and-run crash involving a sport utility vehicle driver and pedestrian Sunday night in South Los Angeles, witnesses told Los Angeles police.
Police blocked off the entire street at West 42nd Place and South Main Street as homicide detectives investigated the early morning attack that followed a verbal altercation between the victim and the SUV occupants, police said. The victim and attacker apparently encountered each other after leaving a bar, police said.
The victim urinated on the SUV's tires, leading to the confrontation, according to investigators. At least one witness told police the victim was attacked with a baseball bat. Police are attempting to confirm the witness' report.
"This is not an accident. This is an intentional act," said Capt. George Rodriguez. "Our suspect intentionally ran the victim over as a result of the dispute."
The victim was on foot when the dark-colored SUV stopped nearby. The driver tried to do a U-turn and ran over the victim in the process, police said.
The attacker's vehicle likely has front-end damage, police said.
Details regarding the victim's condition were not available early Monday afternoon.
NBC4's Jonathan Lloyd contributed to this report.