On Sunday, December 22, 2024, at approximately 6:40 p.m., Police Department officers responded to the scene of a fatal traffic collision at the intersection of Wilshire Boulevard and Chelsea Avenue. The victim was crossing Wilshire southbound when she was struck by a vehicle heading eastbound on Wilshire. The vehicle, a white Toyota Rav4, was seen by witnesses fleeing the scene at a high rate of speed. Tragically, the victim, a Vietnam War veteran and Santa Monica resident, was pronounced deceased at the scene.
SMPD’s Major Accident Response Team responded to begin their investigation and located video footage of the suspect and vehicle. In the course of their thorough and diligent work on this case, the Traffic Investigations Unit identified the driver as 30-year-old Los Angeles resident Rod Sharif.
On December 27, 2024, SMPD’s Traffic Unit, along with SWAT and detectives from the Criminal Investigations Division, served search and arrest warrants for Sharif and his residence in Santa Monica Canyon. Several items of evidence were recovered from the home along with the white Toyota Rav4 that had significant front-end damage that appeared to have been caused during the accident.
Sharif was arrested and booked for 187(a) PC - Murder and 20001(a) VC - Felony Hit and Run. Sharif has prior arrests for 23152(a) VC - Driving Under the Influence, and 23103 VC - Reckless Driving.
Anyone who has information related to this incident or individual is encouraged to contact Investigator Raleigh at Evan.Raleigh@santamonica.gov Investigator Lewis at Lantz.Lewis@santamonica.gov , our non-emergency dispatch line at 310-458-8491, or the Watch Commander 24 hours a day at 310-458-8427.