Update: Fresno men killed in suspected DUI crash identified. Suspect charged with 2 murders
Two men died Monday night in a suspected DUI crash in Fresno.
Officers with the Fresno Police Department responded to the collision at Belmont and Palm avenues at 7:18 p.m.
The Fresno Fire Department arrived quickly, Fresno Police Lt. Leslie Williams said, and found the occupants in both vehicles were pinned in.
Crews worked to remove the occupants.
Williams said officers investigated the collision and determined that a black truck was traveling west on Belmont with no headlights on and approached a red light at Palm and entered the intersection and collided with a gold truck with two men inside that was going north on Palm with a green light.
The gold truck rolled over and came to a rest at the gas station.
One of the occupants in the gold truck was pronounced dead at the scene. The other occupant was taken to Community Regional Medical Center where he died.
The men killed were identified by the Fresno County Coroner’s Office as Robert Ruiz Castro, 71, and Raymond Leigh Sandoval, 62, both of Fresno.
The driver of the black truck appeared to be in stable condition and was in custody for suspicion of driving under the influence, Williams said. He was later identified as Joal Lee Campbell, 36, of Fresno.
According to the Fresno County District Attorney’s Office, Campbell was convicted in 2010 of reckless driving involving alcohol and at the time of the collision was wanted for a violation of driving under the influence of drugs from an arrest in December 2021.
“It is also alleged that Campbell was previously convicted of a residential burglary in 2014, which constitutes a ‘strike’ offense under California’s Three Strikes Law,” the DA’s Office said.
Campbell was charged with two counts of murder; one count of driving under the influence of a combination of alcohol and drugs causing great bodily injury; one count of driving with a blood alcohol concentration over .08% causing great bodily injury; one count of driving under the influence of alcohol causing great bodily injury; one count of driving with a suspended license; and one count of failure to stop at a red light.
Speed was possibly a factor, Williams said.
The Collision Reconstruction Unit investigated the crash.
Williams said officers have surveillance video that captured the collision.
This story was originally published January 6, 2025 at 9:41 PM.
