Update: Victim killed in violent crash near Fresno airport identified as Madera man
Officials have identified the man who was killed in a two-vehicle crash near Fresno Yosemite International Airport early Friday.
A criminal complaint filed by the Fresno County District Attorney’s Office on Monday identified the victim as Angel Damian Rodriguez.
Sgt. Diana Trueba Vega, spokesperson for the Fresno Police Department, confirmed Rodriguez is 24 years old and from Madera.
She told The Bee on Tuesday that Rodriguez died at the hospital, and the passenger who was with him was still in critical condition.
Joseph Douglas Gray, 32, is accused of running a red light at Chestnut and Dakota avenues in a Dodge Charger and crashing into Rodriguez, who was ejected from the Chevy Cruze he was driving, just after midnight Friday.
Authorities said Gray was driving with a blood-alcohol concentration of 0.13% at the time of the crash. He also had three puppies in the vehicle, one of which sustained serious injuries.
The crash was so violent that Rodriguez’s vehicle was wrapped around a pole. The criminal complaint describes the passenger as sustaining a brain injury, causing coma and paralysis.
Gray is charged with murder, vehicular manslaughter, DUI, causing great bodily injury while driving under the influence, animal cruelty, failing to stop at a red light and driving with a suspended license.
Prior to this incident, officials say Gray had been arrested on suspicion of DUI twice in Fresno County — once in September 2024 and in December 2025.
If convicted, Gray faces eight years and eight months in prison, followed by an additional sentence of 15 years to life.
