4-year-old boy dies of injuries from bizarre freeway crash

A 4-year-old boy has died of injuries he suffered in a bizarre traffic incident in San Diego in which his father is now charged with allegedly abandoning the child before police arrived.

Valentino Fabiani died of the head and brain injuries that he suffered the night of June 2 when the 2004 Nissan Titan being driven by his father, Angelo Fabiani Arroyo, drifted to the right along Interstate 5 in the Midway area and struck a metal guardrail, according to the county medical examiner.

The Titan struck a tree and came to rest on its side on top of a concrete retaining wall. The driver got out of the Titan and tried to remove the boy from the vehicle, according to the California Highway Patrol.

After the driver unbuckled the boy’s safety belt, the child fell 7 to 10 feet to the ground, the CHP said. The driver then ran away. The boy was taken to Rady Children’s Hospital in critical condition.

Father and son were the only persons in the vehicle, the CHP said.

Arroyo, 40, was arrested two days later. He is charged with child cruelty and hit-and-run driving in which death occured. He has pleaded not guilty and remains in jail on $150,000 bail.

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tony.perry@latimes.com