Driver called unstable

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — The driver in a bloody hit-and-run spree that killed one man and injured more than a dozen persons was mentally unstable and feeling stress from a recent arranged marriage, relatives said.

Omeed A. Popal, 29, was taken into custody Tuesday after a rampage that terrorized pedestrians, bicyclists and motorists. Authorities think it began more than an hour earlier when his black Honda Pilot fatally struck a man in the East Bay area.

“He drove on sidewalks, streets, hit people on crosswalks. It runs the gamut,” police spokesman Sgt. Neville Gittens said.

Mr. Popal was arrested on suspicion of 14 counts of attempted murder and a charge of willful flight after causing serious injury or death, Sgt. Gittens said.

A woman who identified herself as Mr. Popal’s cousin said he had been having recurring nightmares about someone coming to kill him and had been taking medication.

“He thought the devil was coming to him,” said Zargona Ramish, who went to the family’s home Tuesday afternoon while Mr. Popal’s relatives were speaking with police. “He is a very good person. He is not like that. What’s wrong with him?”

Another cousin, Hamid Nekrawesh, said an arranged marriage in Afghanistan may have contributed to Mr. Popal’s problems. Mr. Popal’s family is from Afghanistan.

“The kid grew up here. He wasn’t used to the lifestyle in Afghanistan. I’m sure that put a lot of pressure on him,” Mr. Nekrawesh said.

The spree began about noon in Fremont, in the East Bay, where an unidentified man walking along the side of the road was hit by a black sport utility vehicle. He was thrown into a field and pronounced dead at the scene, said Sgt. Chris Mazzone of the Fremont Police Department.

Witnesses said the driver did not slow down.

He then crossed the bay into San Francisco, where he injured at least 14 persons in various locations across the city before police boxed him in with their cruisers about 1 p.m. near the Presidio.

The victims were taken to three hospitals. One was in critical condition at San Francisco General, where Mayor Gavin Newsom met with victims and their families.

“These are the things, these are so senseless. They’re utterly inexplicable. They’re impossible to rationalize,” Mr. Newsom said afterward. “The fact that this individual felt compelled for whatever reason to be determined to do what he did is beyond imagination.”

Some of the injured were pedestrians and some were motorists. Victims’ ages ranged from 18 to 84, authorities said.

Neighbors said Mr. Popal was living with his parents in Fremont, home to the nation’s largest Afghan community.

No weapons were found on the suspect, though the car had not been searched, Sgt. Gittens said. No information was available on whether drugs or alcohol were involved, and it was not clear how fast he was driving, he said.

“It was very chaotic,” he said. “Fortunately, we were able to take him into custody.”