Police search for second car believed to be involved in Santa Rosa fatal hit-and-run crash

Police are searching for a second car that may have been involved in a fatal hit-and-run crash Saturday night in west Santa Rosa.

Police said a witness came forward Wednesday, after officers released a surveillance video and photos of a white compact car initially believed to have struck and killed Mathew Thomas Eck, 37, of Santa Rosa, before fleeing.

The witness told investigators Eck, who police believe was homeless, was first struck by a brown or maroon sedan just west of the Occidental and Stony Point roads intersection. The driver, described as a white woman with brown or red hair and a medium to large build, stopped, got out of her car, jumped back in and pulled over to the side of the road, Santa Rosa police said in a news release.

Several vehicles circled Eck, who then was struck by the white car, the witness said. The car dragged Eck to the entrance of the nearby Round Table Pizza parking lot, where police found his body around 9:20 p.m.

Surveillance video of Round Table Pizza’s parking lot showed the small, white car stopped by the body for about 10 to 20 seconds before driving out of the lot. The car, which police said looked similar to a Honda Prelude with a spoiler, had major front-end damage.

Both cars fled before officers arrived, police said.

The crash remains under investigation.

Anyone with information should call Santa Rosa Police Officer Kenny Ferrigno at 707-543-3636.

You can reach Staff Writer Susan Minichiello at 707-521-5216 or susan.minichiello@pressdemocrat.com. On Twitter@susanmini.