Suspect Arrested in Connection With Bernal Hill Hit and Run

/ Todd_Lappin

SFPD booking photo of Aliitasi Alapati, who was arrested as the suspected driver of the vehicle that struck a pedestrian on Bernal Hill on March 22.

The San Francisco Police announced the arrest of a woman who is believed to have been the driver of the vehicle involved in a hit and run accident last month that left a victim with life-threatening injuries on the north-east side of Bernal Hill.

San Francisco resident Aliitasi Alapati, 41, was arrested last Thursday in connection with the March 28 hit and run on Bernal Heights Boulevard.

Video footage of the incident obtained by Bernalwood showed that at 8:22 am, a Jeep Liberty swerved across a lane of traffic and struck a woman who was walking along the footpath on the other side of the road. The video also showed that the Jeep did not stop and left the scene immediately after running the victim down.

Last Thursday, the SFPD moved in to make an arrest.

The Examiner reports that police executed search warrants at three San Francisco homes last Thursday, including one on the 200 block of Raymond Avenue, one on the 300 block of Chenery Street and one on the 300 block of Font Blvd. The suspect vehicle was located at the Raymond Avenue address, and Alaptati was arrested on Font.

The Examiner adds that security camera video footage and evidence provided by witnesses yielded information that helped identify Alaptati as the suspect.

The incident left the victim, an unidentified woman, with life-threatening injuries. While there have been no official statements about the victim’s status, Bernalwood has received information from credible sources that she is recovering from her injuries.

22 thoughts on “Suspect Arrested in Connection With Bernal Hill Hit and Run”

    • Idk…because she didn’t speed off trying to escape…drove off like nothing ever happened….my guess is under the influence of something

  4. She looks nice. I wonder what happened to her face. We still need to know WHY she did it.

  8. Thanks so much for posting this update. Her “mustache” looks more like bruising, to me. Her nose looks scratched up. I wonder what happened there. I am also very curious to know “how/why”… hoping you’ll post another update when that info comes to light, bernalwood.

    Thanks again.

  9. I sometimes feel empathy even for criminals – but not this one. To leave a human being, as though it were garbage, necessates the full penalty of the law. Thank Goddess she was caught!

  10. So glad to know victim is recovering , even though it will take quite awhile before she’s really back on her feet. Also happy to hear suspect was caught .
    Thanks so much for the report.

  11. some of these comments are so rude and stupid. what does her appearance have to do with her leaving the accident and no one knows what happened for her to jump the curb, maybe she was taking her kids to school. I know when i take my monsters to school i’ve almost hit a few people on accident, would it be different if she was lets say a typical bernal mom “30 year old white woman” who has a over priced stroller and thinks her baby shits rainbows? the comments are rude and we should be focusing on why? and what can we do to fix bernal hill road maybe put of safety barriers. If the city won’t pay for them, i don’t see why we cant come together as a community to raise the funds and do it ourselves if a homeless man can raise over $100,000 on gofund me i sure we can raise $20,000 for road barriers and public safety. this could be anyone that panics after a accident.

    • I agree that the comments about her appearance are unhelpful. I don’t care about the looks or background of a person who commits a crime that could kill someone.

      But the rest — no. If you hit someone with your car and drive off, that’s not “this could be anyone.” You either were in no condition to make rational decisions — and so shouldn’t be driving, and should not ever be allowed to drive again — or you’re a terrible person.

    • Well said. Some of the comments here seem to verge on racist, the kind of stuff you’d expect to see people posting on Sfgate and not from our neighbors here on the hill.

      • Yes, some of the comments are rude and beside the point. I had written to the first Examiner reporter who confirmed victim was recovering and out of hospital. No other details.
        We’ll have to wait for more answers

    • Uh no. She ran someone down and left the scene. Leave the race card out of it.

      This has nothing to do with the safety of that intersection!! The woman was walking on the sidewalk ACROSS THE STREET when Alipati MOWED HER DOWN.

  12. The next step would be to get the case # and send letters to the DA urging full prosecution. SF has a habit of not following through on prosecution. It would be sad to see this labeled an “accident”. This woman has no business driving.

  13. I’ve been haunted by this story since I happened upon the scene shortly after the driver took off. I spoke with some cops who were out measuring everything last week and they reported that the jogger is now paralyzed. I really hope that isn’t true.

  14. From looking at the video, I wouldn’t be surprised if she was. I hope this terrible outcome is factored into the punishment!

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