Police said the suspect, Marc Cain Rodriquez, 31, who fled the scene after crashing into Pimentel’s car, has yet to be located.
Late Thursday, the Fresno Police Department identified 19-year-old Pimentel, of Clovis, as “the victim in the fatal collision at N Street and Stanislaus in downtown Fresno,” in a post on Twitter.
According to Pimentel’s sister, Amy Daneen, she was “so positive about everyone and everything” and would have “seen some good” in the suspect.
Daneen told Fresno’s KSEE: “The thing is my family may be angry and my friends may want to hurt this person, but Hannah wouldn’t want that. If she was here now, she would have known he was going through something and she would have seen some good in this person. She would have forgiven him already by now.”
Pimentel was said to be passionate about equality, human rights and the Black Lives Matter movement, according to a GoFundMe page set up to help pay funeral costs, and Daneen said her sister “saw the beauty in everyone and I think she would have gone and changed so many people’s lives.”
According to the GoFundMe account, Pimentel “would want people to love without bounds, to forgive easily, to have compassion no matter the gender, race, beliefs, or history.
“She was a pioneer, fearless and had hope for humanity. She would want you to take that step and forgive someone right now, to hug a stranger, to tell someone you love them,” the description added.
Police tweeted Thursday: “The suspect is still outstanding, and we are asking for the public’s assistance in locating him.”
According to a statement Thursday from the Fresno Police Department, on May 12 Rodriguez drove off at a high speed after detectives from the Multi Agency Gang Enforcement Consortium (MAGEC) attempted a traffic stop before the crash that killed Pimentel.
The statement said: “Upon colliding with the vehicle, Rodriguez did not render any aid to the driver and immediately led the scene on foot.” The victim was pronounced dead at the scene.
Following an “extensive search of the area” using police dogs, Fresno police were unable to locate the suspect, according to the statement.
Police said Rodriguez is a known member of the McKenzie St. Bulldog gang with a violent history and is known to carry firearms.
According to MAGEC, Rodriguez has an outstanding felony warrant for illegal possession of an assault rifle. While fleeing from detectives on May 12, he was seen throwing a loaded rifle out of the window of the driver’s seat, according to the police statement.
Police described Rodriguez to be around 5 ft and 10 inches tall, weighing 210 pounds, with brown hair, brown eyes and tattoo on his neck, according to the Thursday tweet from police, which included a photograph of the suspect.
Anyone with information about the latest incident—who can remain anonymous—is asked to contact Crime Stoppers at 498-STOP or MAGEC Sergeant I. Ruiz at 559-289-7759, the statement said.
The GoFundMe account set up for Pimentel has raised over $4,700 of its $10,000 goal, as of Friday. Any funds left over will go to human rights causes in her honor, KSEE reported.
