Woman killed in violent Oxford Circle crash identified; police search for the driver
OXFORD CIRCLE - Police are investigating a crash that left one woman dead in Oxford Circle early Friday morning.
According to authorities, the crash occurred just before 3 a.m. on Roosevelt Boulevard at Devereaux Avenue.
Woman killed in Oxford Circle crash identified; driver still sought
Philadelphia police say a man driving recklessly on Roosevelt Blvd hit a light pole, flipping the car. The man pulled a female passenger from the wreckage, but she was killed at the scene. The driver tried to remove the license plate, but failed and is being sought by police.
Police found a 34-year-old woman, identified as Izairaliz Espinoza, lying on the ground near a Toyota Sion that was flipped on the driver's side.
"Middle of the night, boom, like a plane hitting the ground, only to look out the window and see a car on its side and saw people crawling out of it and panic," witness Benjamin Wray explained.
Espinoza had severe head trauma and was pronounced dead on scene, Philadelphia Police Chief Inspector Scott Small says.
Izairaliz Espinoza (Family handout)
According to Small, witnesses told police that the car was moving recklessly and at a high rate of speed when it jumped the center median, hit a light pole and flipped on its side.
Authorities say witnesses also say a man climbed out of the car and then pulled Espinoza out of the car through the sunroof.
The driver then attempted to remove the license plate from the car, but he was unable to and fled on foot, according to police.
Wray lives on the corner of where the chaos unfolded. He claims he saw the driver attempt to save the life of the woman. "The driver, he did give the young lady CPR. He did try to help and in his paranoia, or whatever's going on in his life, he decided the best thing to do was leave."
Officials say identification for both the driver and Izairaliz was found in the car.
This crash comes just days after city and state officials touted the success of the Roosevelt Boulevard Automated Speed Enforcement pilot program, which began in June 2020.