BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (KERO) — A few weeks after the hit-and-run, several people, including the driver, were arrested and charged in relation to this case. Yet years later, Angel Berumen's mother continues to wait for justice.
- Video shows a memorial on Niles Street and Brentwood Drive where 16-year-old Angel Berumen was hit by truck that fled the scene.
- Berumen died two days later on January 27, 2022.
- Three years later, five people are charged in this case, yet it remains in its preliminary stages.
It's now been three years since the death of 16-year-old Angel Berumen, who died after he was struck by a truck while walking to school.
A few week after the hit-and-run, several people, including the driver, were arrested and charged in relation to this case. Yet years later, Angel's mother continues to wait for justice.
"It's a very wide range of emotions. It's anxiety. It is it's hope. It's and then at the end, it is a lot of times disappointment," said Jasmine Burleson.
For three years now, Burleson said she's lived in a state of pause, unable to move forward for herself or her family.
"I've had so much happen that I just kind of want to be able to take my children that I still have with me and move them to better situations and better surroundings. And I can't because I have to keep going to court."
On January 25, 2022, Burleson's son Angel was riding his skateboard on Niles Street and Brentwood Drive heading to Foothill High School when he was hit. The 16-year-old died two days later at Valley Children's Hospital in Madera.
Investigators used surveillance video to find the movements of the truck after it fled, according to court documents. It wasn't long before they learned the incident involved an alleged cover-up. Five people are now charged in the case: Juan Rodelas Ortega, 48, Liliana Cidrojas, 49; Anahy Gisselle Rodelas, 21; Osbaldo Quintero-Ortega, 22; and Juan Quintero-Ramirez.
"In the perfect world, everyone would get jail time because everybody had had their hands in you know, the cover-up of this case," Burleson said.
The report states Ortega was worried about going to prison for years for fleeing the scene — and leaving his family. That's when the family decided to repair the damaged truck, wrap it, and discussed taking the truck back to Mexico where it was registered.
By February 2022, Ortega and several of his family members were arrested in Bakersfield, charged for hit-and-run, accessory, and conspiracy to commit a crime.
Yet the case remains still in its preliminary stages and the accused are out on bond.
"It's increasingly hard to see these individuals who took my our son from us being able to just be out here living their lives like nothing's wrong," Burleson said.
While her son's story has brought about more awareness for pedestrian safety, Burleson said it's not enough until she sees justice in court.
"For me, it sends a message that the perpetrators of these crimes have more rights than the victims and their families."
The hearing for Ortega was pushed back again until February 20.
We reached out to the district attorney's office who told us they could not comment on the ongoing case.
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