Pickup Driver Gets 15 to Life for Fatally Striking Pedestrian in Downtown Parking Lot

A man convicted of running over and killing a pedestrian with a vehicle in a downtown San Diego parking lot was sentenced Monday to 15 years to life in state prison.

Zachary Porter, 36, was found guilty by a San Diego jury of second- degree murder for the April 28, 2020, death of Met Austin Siapengo Simon.

Simon, 32, was fatally struck about 5 a.m. that day in the 1100 block of 8th Avenue by a pickup truck driver who police say fled the scene. The site was a parking lot at the time, but a high-rise condominium tower is now currently under construction there.

The victim was taken to a hospital, where he died of his injuries.

Simon’s death was initially believed to be the result of a possible hit-and-run accident, but when investigators reviewed video footage of the event, “it became clear the incident was an intentional act,” SDPD Lt. Matt Dobbs said in 2020.

The truck driven by Porter was later located in Mexico. Porter was arrested in Tijuana and returned to the United States in June of 2020.

–-City News Service